'Why praise foreign development projects only?' Hardeep Singh Puri attacks Congress

Exposing the hypocrisy of Congress for opposing the construction of the Central Vista Project, Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri on Tuesday exhumed a statement of UPA era Foreign Minister Salman Khurshid praising China and expressing his interest to live in Beijing.

Hardeep Singh Puri, who is the Minister of Housing and Urban Affairs in India, made reference to Salman Khurshid's visits to China just a week after the border dispute in the Ladakh region in 2013. Salman Khurshid had then said he would love to live in Beijing.

Hitting out at Congress, Hardeep Singh contended that the Congress leaders praised the development in other countries but are making all efforts to criticise the infrastructural works taking place in India.

Hardeep Singh Puri targets Congress on Central Vista Project 

Hardeep Singh Puri also put out a tweet of Congress leader and former HRD Minister Shashi Tharoor who had lamented about the Indian Parliament in 2018 while speaking highly of the Malaysian Parliament. Visiting the empty chambers of Lower House of the Malaysian Parliament in 2018, Tharoor had made elaborate praises of the Malaysian Parliament saying "each MP has their own nameplate, plush leather swivel chair, laptop and mike". While describing the Indian Parliament, Tharoor had said, "We in Lok Sabha sit crammed on benches with no leg room to stand, let alone swivel." He had then called for an upgrade for the Indian Parliament.

Congress along with other opposition parties have vehemently criticised the construction of the Central Vista project by labelling it as a "vanity project". Former Congress President Rahul Gandhi has called it "criminal wastage," and asked the Central Government to use the project money on improving medical infrastructure during the COVID-19 pandemic despite Rs 35,000 crore have been allotted by the Centre for ramping up health infrastructure in the country in light of COVID-19 pandemic.

Delhi HC Rejects Plea To Halt Central Vista Construction

The Delhi High Court on Monday dismissed a petition seeking to halt the construction of the Central Vista project amidst the lockdown due to the outbreak of the second wave of COVID-19, and also slapped a cost of Rs.1 lakh on the petitioner. "In view of the aforesaid matter, since workers are staying on-site, there is no need to pass any directions. It's a motivated petition and doesn't seem to be a genuine one," said a division bench of the high court presided over by Chief Justice D N Patel and Justice Jyoti Singh while turning down the petition.