Congress, NCP and DMK MPs stage walkout as FM Sitharaman speaks on No Confidence Motion

NEW DELHI: Congress, NCP and DMK MPs on Thursday staged a walkout from the Lok Sabha as Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman was speaking on the No Confidence Motion.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that people moved no confidence against United Progressive Alliance in 2014 and 2019 and further questioned the need to change the name from UPA to I.N.D.I.A.

"People moved no confidence against UPA in 2014 and 2019 and defeated them. The situation will be the same in 2024. HM said yesterday, what was the need to change the name of UPA? They have an amazing unity. It is tough to understand if they are fighting against each other or together," she said.

Finance Minister Sitharaman said that Sengol was ignored for decades by oppositon parties and now PM Modi has restored it to its rightful place in Lok Sabha. "When PM Modi restored it (Sengol) to its rightful place in Lok Sabha, that became an issue, that is an insult of the Tamils. The Sengol was ignored for decades.

The Sengol was lost in history and kept in some museum," she said. "The Kashi Tamil Sangamam showed how Tamil Nadu and Kashi have very deep connections. The first time you heard Tamil being quoted in the United Nations. In 'Mann ki Baat', PM has used Tamil so many times," she added.

Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman also defended the government's policies and showcased India's remarkable economic transformation, asserting that progress is achieved through actions rather than mere rhetoric.

Drawing attention to the dire situations in some developed countries, she said, "the United Kingdom's struggle, where the Bank of England has raised interest rates 14 consecutive times, and the European Central Bank's struggle with high inflation, having raised interest rates nine times to a 23-year high".

Turning the focus to India, Sitharaman stated that "despite the global economic headwinds, India's economy had achieved commendable growth". Citing the turnaround in India's economic fortunes, she recounted the country's journey from being labelled a "fragile economy" by Morgan Stanley in 2013 to now receiving a higher rating due to the government's policies. Sitharaman said, "In 2013, Morgan Stanley declared India as a fragile economy.

The same Morgan Stanley now gave higher grading to India". The term Fragile 5 was coined by a Morgan Stanley analyst in 2013 and refers to a set of five emerging countries, including India, whose economy was not doing well. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to address the Lok Sabha on Thursday at 4 pm in response to the Opposition's no-confidence motion against the NDA government. "At around 4 PM this evening, PM @narendramodi will be taking part in the discussion on the Motion of No-Confidence," the Prime Minister's Office tweeted.

The opposition moved a no-confidence motion against the Modi government on July 26 which was accepted by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla. This is the second time Prime Minister Narendra Modi is facing a no-confidence motion.