Both Houses of Parliament witnessed regular disturbances on Tuesday, with an unrelenting opposition demanding an explanation from the Government on senior journalist Ved Prakash Vaidik's meeting with 26/11 terror mastermind Hafiz Saeed nearly two weeks ago.
Proceedings in the Lok Sabha were adjourned till 12.45 pm, while the Rajya sabha was adjourned till 2 pm as a result of the ruckus caused by the opposition in placing the Narendra Modi Government in backfoot over the issue.
In the Lok Sabha, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj reiterated that it was completely unfair and wrong on the part of the opposition and the Congress Party in particular to blame the government directly for allegedly facilitating the meeting between Vaidik and Saeed. She said that Vaidik had acted in his individual capacity, and that the government had absolutely no role to play in facilitating the trip or the meeting.
A similar statement was made by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in the Rajya Sabha.
Earlier, Congress Party leader Kamal Nath condemned Vaidik's meeting with Saeed, saying "the meeting shows the government has initiated a new track for dialogue with India's most wanted terrorist".
The Lok Sabha was initially adjourned for 20 minutes after an uproar over the Hafiz Saeed-Ved Vaidik meeting and the attack on Gaza by Israel.
On resumption of proceedings, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan allowed for a debate on the meeting, but this proved to be inconsequential. Janata Dal-United leader Sharad Yadav said that since the Congress Party had raised the issue, it would be appropriate if Mani Shankar Aiyar be directly asked about this.
RSS today expressed their opinion regarding this controversy. RSS leader MG Vaidya said a journalist like Vaidik can put his thoughts across, and it is not necessary for everyone to accept it. "It would have been good if Ved Vaidik hadn't met Hafiz Saeed. But he went as a journalist, it's not against the nation," Vaidya added. "Ved Vaidik is a free man and he went to Pakistan to interview Hafiz Saeed," said senior lawyer Ram Jethmalani
"If he (Vaidik) went to Pakistan and spoke against India, then action should be taken against him," said Shiv Sena's Sanjay Raut.
"The government has nothing to do with this," said Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh in the Lok Sabha.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu said the government is ready for a discussion on the matter, but won't suspend Question Hour. He added that the government has nothing to do with the meeting between Hafiz Saeed and Ved Prakash Vaidik.
RSS and BJP leader Ram Madhav said Ved Vaidik has no connection with the organisation. "How can a man who travels with Salman Khurshid and Mani Shankar Aiyar be from the RSS?" he asked.
Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday dubbed Vaidik an RSS man. "The man is an RSS man, that is a known fact. We are curious to know if the Indian embassy (in Pakistan) facilitated this meeting," Rahul Gandhi told journalists Tuesday morning.
In the meanwhile, Journalist and Baba Ramdev associate Ved Prakash Vaidik landed himself in yet another controversy on Tuesday, when he said there is no harm if Kashmir is made an independent nation.
Speaking to a Pakistan-based news channel, Vaidik said that both India and Pakistan should stop fighting over Kashmir and make it an independent nation.
The Modi government has gone into damage control mode in the wake of these statements by Vaidik, who is said to be close to the RSS and BJP leadership.
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