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Congress notice on privilege motion against Modi, Nirmala (Lead)
New Delhi, July 24 (IANS) The Congress on Tuesday submitted a notice to Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan to move a privilege motion against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman for allegedly misleading the House by not revealing the price of the Rafale fighter jets bought from France.
“I give notice of my intention to move a privilege motion against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for making a misleading statement in his speech on the debate of no-confidence motion in (the) Lok Sabha on July 20,” Leader of the Congress in the Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge said in a letter to the Speaker.
Noting that Modi had “asserted that the demand for revealing the purchase price of Rafale jet fighters was against the interest of the nation and had to be contradicted by both the governments, India and France”, and further claimed the acquisition “is fully transparent”, whereas “the Defence Minister in his presence on the floor of the House had refused to reveal the price citing a Confidentiality Agreement” between the two countries.
Kharge said that the French government, in its statement, had nowhere contradicted what was demanded in the House by the opposition, which is to disclose the purchase price of Rafale jet fighters and had “merely referred to the 2008 Confidentiality Agreement”.
He also said that the Prime Minister was fully aware that the Confidentiality Agreement is regarding defence cooperation including acquisition, purchase and transfer of technology, and “does not state that ‘Commercial Costs’ of procurement of defence deals cannot be revealed,” he said.
It is not specific to Rafale jet fighters and nowhere prohibits the disclosure of purchase price to the Parliament and thus the Prime Minister’s claim on transparency in the agreement was “factually incorrect, untrue and deliberately made with the intention to mislead the House”.
The Defence Minister’s assertion on the floor of the House, Kharge alleged, was “absolutely false” and that she “has wilfully misled not only the members of the House, but also the entire nation”.
He also noted that the Minister of State for Defence had on November 18, 2016 ,in a reply to a Parliamentary question, revealed the price of Rafale aircraft as approximately Rs 670 crore and this was again disclosed in Rajya Sabha on March 19, 2018.
“The PM and Defence Minister are contradicting the reply of this MoS,” he said.
Kharge requested that the the notice be accepted and referred to the Privilege Committee of the House for further proceedings.
–IANS
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Dr. Abhishek Verma Dedicates a Shelter in Memory of His Mother, Veena Verma, at KGMU; Inaugurated by Daughter Nicolle Verma
World-renowned business tycoon Dr. Abhishek Verma has supported Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission. In memory of his mother, Late Veena Verma, who was a 3 term Rajya Sabha MP.
Dr. Verma dedicated a state-of-the-art free permanent shelter for the attendants of patients at KGMU Medical University, Lucknow, under the aegis of Vijay Shree Foundation. His daughter, Nicolle Verma, inaugurated the shelter.
During the event, Foodman Vishal Singh honored Nicolle Verma by presenting her with a memento. Mrs. Nidhi Sharma and Avantika Yadav, associated with the organization, welcomed her with garlands. Following this, Nicolle Verma distributed essential items to the attendants and also handed out fruits. She became emotional remembering her grandmother on her birth anniversary.
On this occasion, she also inaugurated the “Veena Verma Sevalaya” in memory of her grandmother, Veena Verma, to serve the attendants. She expressed, “I feel proud that my family is engaged in nation-building as well as social service. Today, in collaboration with Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh Ji, I feel immensely proud to dedicate this shelter for the poor, helpless, and needy attendants of patients battling serious illnesses like cancer. I am honored to be associated with the Hunger-Free World Mission for humanity.”
Inspired by the continuous humanitarian service provided by Vijay Shree Foundation over the past 17 years, Nicolle Verma donated 10 lakh rupees to support the cause. The purpose of this donation is to ensure that services continue for the needy attendants of patients suffering from severe illnesses in hospitals, as facilitated by Foodman Vishal Singh.
It is noteworthy that Dr. Abhishek Verma’s family has a legacy of public and philanthropic service. They are helping millions to carry forward the values and service work of their parents. On the occasion of his mother’s birth anniversary, Dr. Abhishek Verma dedicated this state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College to serve the attendants of patients through the Vijay Shree Foundation.
Supporting Foodman Vishal Singh’s Hunger-Free World mission, Dr. Abhishek Verma assured that he would continually support keeping this flame of humanity alive. He also promised to assist in providing medicines to the helpless patients.
Continuing her grandmother’s legacy of service, Nicolle Verma personally served food to the needy patients and attendants. She said, “It is our good fortune to have received the joy of doing this noble work today through Foodman Vishal Singh. I have taken another step forward in carrying my family’s values and cooperation by joining hands with the Vijay Shree Foundation. My father taught me to serve and help the needy, and I feel happy when I bring a smile to someone’s face.”
On the birth anniversary of the late Veena Verma, the event organizer, Vijay Shree Foundation founder Foodman Vishal Singh, said, “We feel proud and happy that Dr. Abhishek Verma, a globally renowned business tycoon, has extended his support to uplift our country from the hunger index. Today, on his mother’s birth anniversary, he inaugurated a state-of-the-art permanent shelter at Lucknow Medical College, which will always be helpful for the needy attendants of patients. It is a pleasure for me and the organization to receive the affection of Mr. Verma.”
The event was attended by General Manager Verma Family Office Hemant Garg, Sonu Rajput, and the organization’s volunteers, including Sandeep Singh, Parmeshwar Ji, Prashant Rao Gautam, Balram Singh, Ramesh Chaudhary, Suman, Jeetu, Anil, Suraj, Vinay, Manish Bhadauria, Manas Mehrotra, Vivek, Apurv, Happy, and others.