New Delhi, Sep 18 (Agency) “At the movement of bid adieu to our old parliament building, I got a chance to talk about Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru who had said that parliamentary democracy demands many virtues, it demands ability, devotion to work, large measure of cooperation and self-discipline,” said Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury at the Special Session of the Parliament in Lok Sabha on Monday. “Nehru ji enjoyed a massive majority in the Parliament, he was tireless in listening to the Opposition’s voice and never mocked or deflected, pontificating when answering questions,” said Chowdhury. “Nehru ji never believed in steamrolling the Opposition, he gave due respect to the feelings and sentiments of the Opposition members.
It is significant to note that during his tenure Parliament ran smoothly,” he added, “Even the Speaker bell would ring for Nehru ji when he exceeded his time limit while making speeches in the Parliament, this shows that no one is beyond Parliament’s prerogative.” Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in the Lok Sabha, “In this Parliament where Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru spoke at the stroke of midnight hour which continues to inspire everyone.” The PM further said that the movement for the liberation of Bangladesh was supported by this House.“This House had also seen the attack on democracy during the Emergency,” Modi said. During his speech, PM said post-Independence period, many learned people raised various concerns about India.
“They raised apprehensions about whether India would remain united or not, whether the democracy in India would survive or not, but it is the power of this parliament that the world was proven wrong,” Modi said. Modi said the decision to construct this building was of foreign rulers, but people can never forget the hard work and money invested by the countrymen in its construction. “Even though we will move to a new Parliament building, this old building always inspires the coming generations. It is a very emotional moment to bid farewell to this House. As we are leaving this House, our mind is filled with many emotions and many memories,” he added. “Over 7500 public representatives have so far contributed in both the Houses. During this period, about 600 women MPs have enhanced the dignity of these Houses. Initially the number of women here was less, but gradually women have also enhanced the dignity of this House,” PM Modi added.