A heated exchange occurred in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday during the presentation of the 130th constitutional amendment. The clash involved Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Congress General Secretary KC Venugopal. Venugopal’s remarks provoked a strong reaction from the Home Minister, who questioned whether Venugopal would teach him ethics. The core of the disagreement stemmed from Venugopal’s comments about a past case.
During the introduction of the 130th amendment, Venugopal made a personal remark directed at Amit Shah, referencing the 2010 Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter case. He pointed out that Shah was the Home Minister of Gujarat when the incident occurred and questioned whether Shah was arrested then or whether he had upheld ethical standards at that time. This statement triggered significant uproar in the House.
In response, Amit Shah retorted by asking if Venugopal would lecture him on ethics. The Home Minister stated that he had also faced legal proceedings and had been imprisoned. He added that he had resigned before the case went on, and he didn’t hold any government position while the case was ongoing.
The 130th constitutional amendment aims to bring various high-ranking officials under legal scrutiny. The amendment encompasses figures from Chief Ministers and Union Ministers to the Prime Minister. It allows for the removal of Ministers and Chief Ministers upon arrest or detention, and also mandates resignation after 30 days of judicial custody. This is considered a significant step by the government to curb criminality in politics. Moreover, it stipulates that the Prime Minister, Chief Ministers, or any member of the cabinet must resign if they fail to secure bail within a month of being arrested for any offense.