Zee Media Bureau
New Delhi: Reacting to the decision of the Union Cabinet to withdraw the bill and the ordinance intended to protect convicted lawmakers on Wednesday, the main Opposition the Bhartiya Janata Party said that the theater of the absurd had been played out.
Addressing the media in the national capital, BJP spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad said that the ordinance was brought about with great speed, without any consideration of morality.
"Now suddenly we see a change. But it has nothing to do with morality, legality or constitutionality. It has to do with dynasty," he said.
He added, "This also proves what we have been saying that the PM does not matter but only the family matters."
The BJP leader also reminded the media that before Rahul Gandhi called the ordinance as `nonsense` and something that should be torn and thrown away, the main Opposition had gone to the President asking him not to sign the unconstitutional bill.
However, he added that he was happy at the withdrawal of the bill and the ordinance as it was the triumph of democracy.
Reversing its earlier step, Cabinet today decided to withdraw the ordinance as well as bill that sought to give protection to convicted lawmakers in the wake of public outburst against it by Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi.
The Cabinet took the decision in a meeting of about 20 minutes which was chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
The decision capped a day of hectic activities which included Rahul Gandhi meeting the Prime Minister which was followed by a meeting of Congress Core Group headed by party President Sonia Gandhi.
"The Union Cabinet unanimously decided that the Ordinance regarding certain aspects of the Representation of the People Act as well as the Bill (pending in Parliament) should be withdrawn," Information and Broadcasting Minister Manish Tewari told reporters.
The Cabinet had approved on September 24 the Ordinance which sought to negate the Supreme Court order of July 10 which ruled that any lawmaker would stand immediately disqualified if convicted by a court.
The overturning of the decision came in the wake of Rahul Gandhi`s trashing of the Ordinance as "nonsense". He had said it should be "torn" and "thrown out".
With PTI inputs
