Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj, who broke into a midnight dance at Rajghat as her outfit was holding a 24-hour satyagraha, seems to be in a major trouble.
The top leadership is of the opinion that her swaying to the beats, not merely “affected the seriousness of the situation but also gave Congress and the Opposition to ridicule the party”. The BJP had organised a 24-hour satyagraha to protest the midnight crackdown on Baba Ramdev at Ramlila Grounds. Incidentally, Ms Swaraj is also lbyying hard to the party’s face during the 2014 general elections.
Ms Swaraj, who had vowed to shave her head in 2004, if Sonia Gandhi took over as Prime Minister, however, remained unfazed by the all-round criticism. For her it was a “patriotic dance”. Flanked by two party spokesmen, Ravi Shankar Prasad and Shahnawaz Hussain, Ms Swaraj said, “We are patriotic people and we can sing and dance to patriotic tunes anywhere in the country. Those who are opposing it are suffering from mental slavery.” For her, the “country is independent now and I don’t need permission from anyone to sing and dance to patriotic tunes.” She hit out at Congress for calling the BJP “a party of dancers”. Replying to the charge that she had hurt the sanctity of Mahatma Gandhi’s samadhi by dancing at Rajghat, Ms Swaraj said, “Gandhiji would have ben happy, if he saw us dancing to the patriotic song Yeh desh hai veer jawano ka.”
AICC spokesperson Manish Tewari said, he cannot ask why she danced there, but she should tell the people of the country “what was she celebrating there”.
While demanding Ms Swaraj’s resignation from post of Leader of Opposition, Congress said, she should make public the reasons why she was dancing at the Rajghat and what was she celebrating.
“By dancing at the samadhi of Mahatma Gandhi, Sushma Swaraj has not only insulted Gandhiji but all the freedom fighters and the entire countrymen. She should resign from the post of the Leader of the Opposition and apologise to the people,” AICC general secretary B.K. Hariprasad said.