New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday invoked former Congress prime ministers Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi to amplify his concern about frequent disruptions of proceedings in Parliament.

At the same time, in a direct attack on the Congress, Modi traced the deep roots of poverty in India to 60 years of government run by the party, which his Bharatiya Janata Party-led (BJP-led) National Democratic Alliance (NDA) ousted from power in the 2014 general election.

“It is true that I only got to know once I came here (to the centre) how deep are the roots of poverty you have made. In the 60 years, if we would have done something to benefit the poor, this would not be the case of the poor in our country," Modi said.

Relations between the government and the Congress are likely to deteriorate further after the PM’s combative speech, making it even more difficult to steer bills through the Rajya Sabha, where the NDA is in a minority.

“The house is such a forum where points of views are placed, the government has to place their stance and during discussion no one is left out. If during discussion, the house is functioning in a proper manner then it will be more effective. This is not being said by Narendra Modi, but by former PM Rajiv Gandhi," Modi said in his reply to the motion of thanks on the President’s address to Parliament at the start of the budget session.

“The biggest problem is the opposition is against the fast pace of development. This even the educated are doing. I feel that a strong and tall wall has covered us from all sides. This was said by Indira Gandhi in 1968," Modi said.

Modi quoted Nehru as saying in 1957 that in five years, a government “should not just be in the margins of history but help in creating history".

Urging the opposition to support the government, Modi said, “I need your help and your experience. Let’s work together and do some work. Government will come and go but this country will stay, let’s work for the people."

The ongoing budget session of Parliament has been disrupted on several occasions by issues including charges of sedition against some students of Jawaharlal Nehru University in February and the suicide of Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula at the University of Hyderabad in January.

Modi’s attack was focused solely on the Congress and sought to differentiate “some other opposition leaders" who have raised key issues in the budget session.

“The house is not let to run due to an inferiority complex. Even in the opposition there are talented MPs whose thoughts are an asset. If the house functions then their talent will be known and they (Congress) are scared of that," he said.

Analyst say that this is an attempt to reshape the narrative to the BJP’s advantage.

“He’s leading the whole thing like a political man so people understand the new message. If he’s brought poverty (into the debate) he is clearly addressing the rural population," said New Delhi-based political analyst Manisha Priyam, adding that it was an attempt to link the predicament of the poor to the long reign of the Congress.

The Congress criticized the PM’s speech.

“It is sad that the PM did not talk about any of the issues which were raised by the opposition. Prime Minister Narendra Modi didn’t talk about India’s dire economic situation, job losses or falling exports," veteran Congress politician Anand Sharma, deputy leader of the opposition in the Rajya Sabha, said.

Modi had some suggestions to make on parliamentary proceedings. Steps should be taken to ensure that women members and first-time parliamentarians get more chances to participate in discussions, he said. He suggested that on international women’s day on 8 March, only women members participate in discussions. He asked the House to suggest one session where for a week only first-time members get the opportunity to speak.

Modi’s comments came a day after Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi attacked him and said the NDA government does not listen to the voice of the people.

In his speech, Modi took on Gandhi, who had on Tuesday accused the Prime Minister of dismissing the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) as useless. “If you had removed poverty (from the country during your years in office) then our people today would not need to dig ditches," Modi said, adding, “If you had eradicated poverty, we would not need a programme like MGNREGS".

Under MGNREGS, introduced by the previous Congress-led government, one member of every rural household is guaranteed 100 days of manual work every year.

Agreeing with Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge’s recent observation that the MGNREGS was bedevilled by corruption, Modi said his government was trying remove loopholes in the programme that allowed the siphoning off of resources—something a 2012 Comptroller and Auditor General report had pointed out.

“We are trying to use technology and directly transfer money into the accounts of the people. We have seen that the states with the largest number of poor are not getting the benefit of MGNREGS. We have also seen that the programme never gives the requisite 100 days of work to each person demanding work," he said. “On an average, the number of days a person gets work is 30-40 days," Modi said, adding his government was trying to address all these issues, including weeding out intermediaries siphoning off funds.

Modi also pointed to the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, the rural roads programme started at the time of the previous NDA government between 1998 and 2004.

“This was a programme started by former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and if you look at the programme, it benefitted the states that needed it the most. It created a network of roads that brought in jobs and prosperity," Modi said.

Potential improvements in MGNREGS include creation of durable assets, specially in irrigation, Modi said. Special focus would be laid on water conservation.

Elizabeth Roche contributed to this story.

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