India’s major opposition parties on Sunday boycotted the inauguration of a new Parliament building by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a rare show of unity against his Hindu nationalist ruling party.
NEW DELHI—India’s major opposition parties on Sunday boycotted the inauguration of a new Parliament building by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a rare show of unity against his Hindu nationalist ruling party, which has ruled for nine years and is seeking a third term in next year’s elections.
“India is the mother of democracy,” Modi said, as lawmakers thumped their desks. “Several years of foreign rule stole our pride from us. Today, India has left behind that colonial mindset.” Opposition parties said in a statement Wednesday that Modi’s decision to inaugurate the building was “a grave insult” to India’s democracy, because the government had “disqualified, suspended and muted” opposition lawmakers while passing “controversial legislation” with little debate.
The new triangular-shaped building—built at an estimated cost of $120 million—is part of a $2.8 billion revamp of British-era offices and residences in central New Delhi that will also include blocks of buildings to house government ministries and departments, and Modi’s new private residence. The entire project, called the “Central Vista,” is spread over 3.2 kilometers .
Modi’s government has said the overhaul was necessary because the older building was “showing signs of distress and overutilization” and that the new design “combines the country’s heritage and traditions.” Last year, Modi inaugurated a refurbished colonial-era avenue in the heart of New Delhi that is used for ceremonial military parades. The boulevard was earlier called Rajpath, or Kingsway, but Modi’s party changed it to Kartavya Path, or Road to Duty, arguing the old name was a “symbol of slavery” that had been “erased forever.”
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