'Inauguration of New Parliament building organized like religious function': Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan criticized the new Parliament building's inauguration as being "unbecoming of our nation" as it was conducted like a religious ceremony. According to CM Vijayan, such a government event shouldn't have been handled in a religious manner. 

Kozhikode: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Sunday criticized the new Parliament building's inauguration as being "unbecoming of our nation" as it was conducted like a religious ceremony.

According to CM Vijayan, such a government event shouldn't have been handled in a religious manner. 

The Chief Minister further said that the event should have included Indian President Droupadi Murmu. 

"What happened today in Parliament, the manner it was conducted in, like a religious function, not making the President a part of it, all of it was unbecoming of our nation," he said, speaking at an event held in memory of former MP and late LJD leader M P Veerendra Kumar. 

Both Kerala's ruling CPI(M) and the state's opposition Congress had earlier slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) over the opening of the new Parliament building and referred to it as a "black day" for Indian democracy and an attempt to fabricate a different version of events. 

It's a "black day" for Indian democracy, AICC general secretary (in-charge of organisation) K C Venugopal said. 

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday (May 28) inaugurated and dedicated the New Parliament building to the nation. The new Parliament building can comfortably seat 888 members in the Lok Sabha chamber and 300 in the Rajya Sabha chamber, it said. In the case of a joint sitting of both Houses, a total of 1,280 members can be accommodated in the Lok Sabha chamber.

The Prime Minister laid the foundation stone of the new parliament building on December 10, 2020. The new building has been built in record time with quality construction, the Lok Sabha Secretariat said.