Cong readies strategy for Monsoon session

Fireworks are expected in the monsoon session of the Parliament starting July 21 as the Congress has planned to raise a storm over the Lalit Modi row and the Vyapam scam to corner the NDA government.

“It is now the BJP’s time to face the music,” a senior Congress leader said, recalling how the BJP had disrupted the entire winter session of the Parliament on the 2G spectrum issue when the UPA was in power. Besides targetting External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje in the Modi row and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan over the Vyapam scam, the Congress has also sought to revive the old allegations of the PDS scam in Chhattisgarh, another BJP-ruled state.

However, the Congress might feel dejected after heavyweight regional satraps like Mulayam Singh Yadav, Lalu Prasad and Mamata Banerjee turned down the invitation of its chief Sonia Gandhi for Iftar dinner on Monday, citing prior engagements.

The Congress was looking to replicate its success in uniting the opposition on various bills, but some regional parties have their own ideas on them. The opposition hasn’t even reached a consensus on the ‘Lalitgate’ issue. Apparently, the Congress is not worried.

“The regional parties may have their own agenda. But we are asking a basic question: Were the actions of Swaraj and Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje constitutional?,” said a senior Congress leader.