Nehru birth anniversary: Oppn slams Centre over absence of RS Chairman, LS Speaker from Parliament event

New Delhi: The Opposition on Sunday hit out at the government over the absence of Rajya Sabha Chairman, Lok Sabha Speaker and ministers from the traditional event marking the birth anniversary of those whose portraits adorn Parliament’s Central Hall. Congress chief Sonia Gandhi, along with other party leaders, attended the event marking the birth anniversary of India’s first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru. “Extraordinary scene today in Parliament at the traditional function to mark the birth anniversary of those whose portraits adorn the Central Hall. Speaker Lok Sabha absent. Chairman Rajya Sabha absent. Not a single Minister present. Can it get more atrocious than this?!” Congress’ chief whip in Rajya Sabha Jairam Ramesh, who attended the event, said on Twitter. Tagging Ramesh’s tweet, Trinamool Congress leader Derek O’Brien also hit out at the government. “Nothing surprises me anymore. This dispensation is destroying India’s great institutions, including #Parliament one day at a time,” said O’Brien in a tweet. Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to Twitter to pay tribute to Nehru on his birth anniversary. Born in 1889, the Congress stalwart remains India’s longest-serving prime minister.