After several days of Parliament blockade, FM clears on PM Modi's Pak jibe at Cong

NEW DELHI: BJP and Congress arrived at a truce in Parliament on Wednesday with the government stating that PM Narendra Modi did not question the commitment of his predecessor Manmohan Singh to the nation and Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad dissociating from derogatory comments against Modi.With the statements, the logjam over Modi’s remarks about Singh and former Vice-President Hamid Ansari attending a dinner for Pakistani dignitaries at the residence of Congress veteran Mani Shankar Aiyar ended and the Rajya Sabha resumed normal functioning. Azad’s reference was to Aiyar’s remarks that the PM was a “neech (lowly) and uncivil” person.The resolution was brought about after a few meetings between Congress leaders and leader of House, finance minister Arun Jaitley , and after prompts by vice president Venkaiah Naidu. Minister of state for parliamentary affairs Vijay Goel also met former PM Manmohan Singh to seek his support for a resolution.During the Gujarat campaign, Modi had alleged at a rally that Pakistan was taking an undue interest in the campaign and referred to the dinner at Aiyar’s residence where former Pakistani foreign minister Khurshid Kasuri and Pakistan high commissioner Sohail Mahmood were present.Speaking in the House, Jaitley said, “Many statements had been made on all sides during the elections. We don’t want the stalemate to continue as a result of this. Let me categorically state that the Prime Minister in his statements or speeches did not question nor did he mean to question the commitment to this nation of either Dr Manmohan Singh, the former Prime Minister, or Shri Hamid Ansari, the former Vice-President. Any such perception is completely erroneous. We hold these leaders in high esteem as also their commitment to this nation.”With Congress not insisting on an apology, Azad said, “I thank Leader of the House for his clarification on the issue that resulted in stalemate in the House. From my party, I want to assure you that we also don’t believe to demean the post of Prime Minister. So we totally disassociate ourselves with statement or comment made against the PM during election, there is no scope for any derogatory remarks against PM.”In response to Modi’s poll-time comments, Singh had asked Modi to apologise to the nation for alleging that he was conspiring with Pakistan for BJP’s defeat in the Gujarat polls. Rejecting the charge as “innuendos and falsehoods”, he had said he was deeply pained by the Prime Minister’s “ill thought transgression.”