Master distorians: Cong slams PM Modi, Shah over criticism of Nehru for 1st amendment

New Delhi: Hitting back at the BJP for accusing Jawaharlal Nehru of curbing freedom of speech through the Constitution’s first amendment, the Congress Wednesday slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah as “master distorians” persistently attacking their “favourite target”.

The opposition party asked whether it is too much to expect any adherence to truth and facts from the two leaders.

Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said, “Articles 19(2), 15(4), and 31(b) were introduced into the Constitution of India from June 18, 1951, through the First Amendment. A Select Committee had examined the Bill’. In para 2 of his dissent note Syama Prasad Mookerjee had written: ‘The addition of the word ‘reasonable’ before ‘restrictions’ in 19(2) is a very wholesome change.” “It makes Article 19(2) justiciable and I do not wish to minimise the importance of this change in the protection of civil liberty in this country,” he said.

Ramesh said the word “reasonable” had, in fact, been added by Nehru himself.

“Article 19(2) followed a letter written by Sardar Patel to Nehru on June 3, 1950. Article 15(4)followed the Supreme Court’s striking down of reservations in public educational institutions through the Champakam Dorairajan case in then Madras. Article 31(b) was the result of the Supreme Court striking down zamindari abolition laws in Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and other states,” he said.

“Both those master distorians– the PM and the HM — were silent on this background to the first Amendment as they attacked their favourite target,” Ramesh said and asked if it is too much to expect any adherence to truth and facts from this duo.

Both Modi and Shah had attacked the Congress during their speeches in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, respectively, for curbing freedom of speech through the first constitutional amendment.