'If Congress Don't Take Action...': BJP Seeks Apology Over Party MP's 'Separate Country' Remark

Speaking in the Lok Sabha, BJP MP Pralhad Joshi sought an apology from Sonia Gandhi over the issue of Congress MP DK Suresh's 'forced to demand a separate country' remark.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi on Friday raised the issue of Congress MP DK Suresh's "forced to demand a separate country" statement, in the Lok Sabha and demanded an apology, Speaking in the lower house, Joshi said that this is a violation of his oath as a Lok Sabha MP. "I demand an apology and action from Sonia Gandhi. This is a violation of his oath (as an MP)...I urge that the matter be sent to the Ethics Committee...Congress should take action. If they don't the country will believe that you too are involved in 'tukde tukde' of the country."

On Thursday, the Lok Sabha MP from Bengaluru Rural said that the southern states of the country will raise a demand for a separate country if the centre 'continues the trend' of not releasing funds for them. Speaking to the reporters, Suresh accused the centre of not releasing funds to South Indian states.

"The Centre is not properly giving the right share of GST and direct taxes to South Indian states. The South Indian states are facing injustice. The money collected from southern states is being given to North Indian states. If this continues, we will be forced to demand a separate country," he said, as quoted by ANI.

Kharge Condemns Congress MP's Remark

Congress President and Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday said that the grand old party will not tolerate or stand for anyone speaking about 'breaking the country'. Addressing the House, the Kharge said,"From Kanyakumari to Kashmir, the country and its people are one and will remain so."

'Unparliamentary': Shashi Tharoor On Pralhad Joshi Raising Issue Of MP DK Suresh's Remark  

On Union Minister Pralhad Joshi talking about Congress MP DK Suresh's statement, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor says, "What the minister did was unparliamentary on two grounds. First, he raised an issue which has nothing to do with the house. It was not a statement which was made in the house. Secondly, he did so based on media reports which have not been verified. Neither of those is admissible in the house... Why was the minister allowed to misuse the time of the house in this manner?"