Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu slams Congress for disrupting Parliament

Chennai: Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu on Sunday lashed out at Congress for disrupting Parliament and expressed the hope that the party understands its responsibility and comes to the House to discuss issues.

"Eight more important bills are there, four bills were already passed in Lok Sabha. I hope Congress understands its responsibility. Let us see what is going to happen.

I want Monday to be Monday and I don't want Monday to be a Sunday," he told reporters in Chennai.

"I have told them (Congress party) that please come to the House. Let there be discussion. Even the suspension of Congress MPs could be revoked. But there was no response. Even now if there is a meaningful suggestion, the government is willing to consider the suggestion," Naidu said.

Noting that it was the duty of the government and the opposition to run Parliament jointly, he said, "They don't want the government to succeed. We want both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha to function at least for coming four days, since (only) four days are left (for the Monsoon Session to end)."

On Saturday, Congress threw the ball in the government's court on the issue of smooth functioning of Parliament which largely remained paralysed over Lalit Modi and Vyapam issues, saying if it was interested in its running, then it will reach out to the opposition.

Congress spokesman RPN Singh had said in Delhi that if the BJP government was interested in running Parliament, "then it will reach out to the opposition which has been agitating for the cause of people and raising the issue of corruption".

On the Lalit Modi issue, Naidu wanted to know why he was allowed to go out of India in the first place. "...Who was in the government? Why no action was taken against Lalit Modi.

Who was in the government...? No answer." Lashing out at Congress, he said, "While in power, they pushed India backward, now in opposition they do not want India to move forward."

Congress has been protesting against the suspension of 25 MPs in Lok Sabha and demanding resignation of Union Minister Sushma Swaraj and two chief ministers over the Lalit Modi controversy and Vyapam scam.

The Monsoon Session is concluding on August 13.