New Delhi [India], August 25 : Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Monday contrasted BJP's direct public interaction with Congress's outreach programs led by Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi saying that there is a "big difference" between the two.
In an interview with ANI the Home Minister said, "There is a big difference between managing a program and communicating with the public."
Shah also tore into the Congress saying that the party seeks to create "illusions" and faces growing "frustration" after electoral defeats.
He said, "They (Congress) want to create a kind of illusion among the people. And they will definitely not succeed, because our direct interaction with the people is many times greater than theirs. We talk to the people. We haven't just come here and sat by chance. After losing three elections, I think the level of frustration is such that the normal sense of judgment, he (Rahul Gandhi) has lost it."
He also affirmed that, contrary to allegations by the opposition, the presence of the CISF is not an attempt to stifle or suppress lawful protest within Parliament.
"First, please understand this one point clearly. Inside Parliament, any force present there, is under the authority of the Speaker. The identity of the force itself does not matter. Earlier, it used to be personnel from the Delhi Police; now it is CISF," he said.
He added, "But the moment they come within the security perimeter of the House, they are no longer considered CISF or Delhi Police personnel, they are regarded as Marshals. And they function under the Speaker's authority. Marshals enter the House only when the Speaker orders them to do so."
Earlier on August 5, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said the Modi government "has accepted" that CISF personnel were deployed in the Rajya Sabha and said whatever name is used for their presence in the House, "it is an insult to Parliament".
In a post on X, Jairam Ramesh targeted the government and said Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge was right in asking if Union Home Minister Amit Shah has "taken over control of the Council of States".
"This is an insult to Parliament and the Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha was right in asking today whether the Union Home Minister has taken over control of the Council of States," he added.
"So finally the Modi Government has accepted today that CISF personnel were indeed deployed in the Rajya Sabha last week to prevent Opposition MPs from exercising their democratic right of protest. You can call them by whatever name but the fact remains that they were all from the CISF," Jairam Ramesh said.
Amid noisy scenes in Rajya Sabha, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju refuted Kharge's allegations that CISF was brought to the House. "Only marshals can come to the House," he said. He alleged that Kharge had misled the House and written "a wrong letter" to the Deputy Chairman. He said members of the opposition are levelling wrong allegations in the media that the military, CISF, and Police had been brought to the House.