New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday has dedicated the newly built Parliament building to the nation in a ceremony marked with solemn multi-faith prayers, puja and havan.
The most noteworthy moment of the ceremony came when PM Modi installed the historic ‘Sengol’, surrounding its historic validity a controversy thickened last week, near the Lok Sabha Speaker’s chair.
Reports in the morning said that initial phase of the ceremony is scheduled to end by 9.30 and the second leg will start at noon with national anthem in the Lok Sabha chamber with PM Modi and other dignitaries in attendance.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled a commemorative plaque for the new building.
Images of the ceremony showed PM Modi walking into the new building with ‘Sengol’ in his hands, before installing it into the building.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla was present at the ceremony alongside Adheenam seers, who handed over the scepter to PM Modi.
As many as 20 Opposition parties announced boycotting the ceremony protesting against the ‘inappropriateness’ in PM Modi opening the building, while demanding President Droupadi Murmu to dedicate it to the nation.
The protest spearheaded by the Congress led to a debate on the role of the President and the Prime Minister as defined in the Constitution.
Along with the Congress, Aam Aadmi Party, and Trinanool Congress on Wednesday issued a joint statement, calling PM Modi inaugurating the building an ‘assault on democracy’.
Regional parties including the Biju Janata Dal have accepted the invitation calling it “momentous occasion”, which is ‘in the true spirit of democracy’.
JD(S) chief and former PM HD Deve Gowda on Thursday announced that he would attend the event, saying ‘That magnificent building was built with the tax money of the people of the country. It belongs to the country. It is not BJP or RSS office’.