Congress always prioritised personal interest over Constitution: Rajnath Singh

Singh, who was the first speaker from the ruling coalition NDA, said, "Congress has never respected the Constitution, nor the Constitutional values, nor the Constitutional institutions. Congress leaders have always placed personal interest above constitutional values and institutional dignity."

"The Congress party, which is singing the praises of the Constitution today, instead of respecting the order of the Supreme Court, crushed the freedom of speech and expression of the citizens by making constitutional amendments in 1951 itself. The first general election in the country had not even taken place. Congress had no mandate."

Referring to the Shah Bano case, the defence minister said, "Remember the Shah Bano case which was a landmark decision for the rights of Muslim women in India. In this case, the Supreme Court had ruled in favour of Shah Bano.

"Through this decision, the Supreme Court had said that Muslim women are also entitled to receive alimony."

The debate has been called to mark 75 years of the country's Constitution.

Apart from Singh, about 12-15 other parliamentarians from the treasury bench will also speak.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi will wrap it up with his speech on Saturday.

The debate is being held amid the logjam in parliament over Sonia Gandhi-George Soros' alleged link.

The BJP on Sunday alleged Sonia was linked to George Soros funded Forum of Democratic Leaders in the Asia-Pacific (FDL-AP) and she served the organisation in the capacity of the co-president.

The BJP has alleged Soros founded organisation supported the idea of Kashmir as an independent nation.

The party also claimed that the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation, under Sonia Gandhi’s chairmanship, partnered with the Soros Foundation, "demonstrating the impact of foreign funding on Indian organizations."

Congress MP Karti Chidambaram said, "These kinds of theories have no place in serious political discourse...These kinds of deep state theories must be dismissed."