Ex Minister from Odisha Dharmendra Pradhan arrived in Parliament on Monday to a warm welcome by the BJP leaders amidst “Dharmendra Pradhan zindabad” slogans and cheers.

Two days after he resigned as Education minister, Dharmendra Pradhan arrived in Parliament on Monday to a warm welcome by the BJP leaders amidst “Dharmendra Pradhan zindabad” slogans and cheers . He was also given a traditional cap and a shawl on the shoulders  by one of the MPs as he reciprocated this with a smile and handfolded (Namaste) gesture.

The Opposition MPs at the same time shouted slogans like ‘Chor Chor, Paper Chor’ and hit out at the ruling dispensation for felicitating Pradhan.

Congress leader Pawan Khera said, “These are the same people who even welcomed the rapists in the Bilkis Bano case, so let’s leave them aside. Pradhan is an RSS hero because he implemented the RSS agenda through the education ministry. That’s why he’s their hero. But as far as Pradhan is concerned, people now know his true self has we can see on social media and on roads.”

Hitting out at the Government, Congress deputy leader in the Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi alleged that the BJP government is “not serious” about reforming the education system and termed the proposed anti-paper leak legislation a “cosmetic Bill”.

“I see that this Government is not serious about reforming the Indian education system. Therefore, they have brought a cosmetic Bill… we already know that a main culprit of a previous scam, was let go by the court. Because sufficient evidence was not gathered, so what use of this fast-track amendment Bill. When this BJP government is hell-bent upon protecting those who are indulging in all this kind of scams,” Gogoi said.

Gogoi also questioned the Government’s announcement of a new high-powered committee on education reforms, saying a similar panel headed by K Radhakrishnan had been constituted two years ago but “nothing happened” and it remained “only on paper”.

“Secondly, Prime Minister Modi himself is touting this new high-powered committee as if it’s a major reform. But just two years ago, there was another committee tasked with the same objective under K Radhakrishnan. Nothing happened, just mere on paper and for them even today, Pradhan is a successful education minister,” he said.

Referring to the police action against student protesters on July 20, Gogoi alleged that the government wanted to “protect” Home Minister Amit Shah and claimed that students in BJP-ruled states were facing FIRs and arrests, creating “a fear of reprisal”. He reiterated the opposition’s demand that the home minister make a statement in Parliament on the police action.

“…They don’t want to remove the RSS triangle hole on the Indian education system. They don’t want reform and for us, our purpose remains the same that the home minister must give a statement on the floor of the House as to how the police brutality was undertaken on 20th of July,” Gogoi said.

When asked about Pradhan being welcomed by BJP leaders, Congress MP Renuka Chowdhury said, “I see it in the same way they did for Bilkis Bano’s killers. By welcoming Pradhan, they are making him, a guilty person, hero from zero. This is exactly what they do. Their attitude has always been the same. That’s what I’ve been saying all along. This is the character of this government, and their values are zero.”When reporters asked Pradhan for his reaction to the new anti-paper leak bill and on his resignation, he did not respond.