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Amit Shah criticiced Congress for opposing a bill to remove the PM or CMs arrested on serious charges, accusing them of wanting to run governments from jail.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah. (File)
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Wednesday launched a scathing attack on Congress for its opposition to the new bill that would allow for the removal of a Prime Minister or Chief Minister if they are arrested for serious crimes. Shah argued that Congress is against the bill because it wants to stay above the law, run governments while in jail, and maintain its grip on power.
In a post on X, the Union Minister compared Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who “introduced a constitutional amendment to bring himself within the ambit of the law,” and former PM Indira Gandhi, who “through Constitutional Amendment No. 39, granted such a privilege to the Prime Minister that no legal action could be taken against them.”
He further slammed the Congress for opposing the Bill, saying that its political approach has been to use constitutional amendments to place the Prime Minister above the law. In contrast, the BJP’s policy is to ensure that its own Prime Minister, Cabinet Ministers, and Chief Ministers are subject to the law.
एक ओर प्रधानमंत्री श्री @narendramodi जी ने अपने आप को कानून के दायरे में लाने का संविधान संशोधन पेश किया है और दूसरी ओर कानून के दायरे से बाहर रहने, जेल से सरकारें चलाने और कुर्सी का मोह न छोड़ने के लिए काँग्रेस के नेतृत्व में पूरे विपक्ष ने इसका विरोध किया है।देश को वह समय भी…
— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) August 20, 2025
What’s In The Bill?
Shah tabled the Constitution (One Hundred and Thirtieth Amendment) Bill, 2025, the Government of Union Territories (Amendment) Bill, 2025, and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill, 2025, in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday which provides for the removal of the Prime Minister or Chief Ministers arrested on serious criminal charges and kept in custody for over 30 days.
In a post on X, he said that the Constitutional Amendment Bill was introduced to affirm the Modi government’s commitment against the political corruption in the country and the public’s outrage.
He said that the purpose of this bill is to elevate the declining level of morality in public life and bring integrity to politics.
As per Shah, the law that will come into existence through these three bills is as follows:
देश में राजनीतिक भ्रष्टाचार के विरुद्ध मोदी सरकार की प्रतिबद्धता और जनता के आक्रोश को देख कर आज मैंने संसद में लोकसभा अध्यक्ष जी की सहमति से संवैधानिक संशोधन बिल पेश किया, जिससे महत्त्वपूर्ण संवैधानिक पद, जैसे प्रधानमंत्री, मुख्यमंत्री, केंद्र और राज्य सरकार के मंत्री जेल में…— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) August 20, 2025
(1) No person, while arrested and in jail, can govern as Prime Minister, Chief Minister, or a minister of the central or state government.
(2) When the Constitution was framed, our Constitution makers could not have imagined that in the future, there would be political figures who would not resign on moral grounds before being arrested. In recent years, an astonishing situation has arisen in the country where Chief Ministers or ministers have continued to run the government immorally from jail without resigning.
(3) This bill also includes a provision that allows an accused politician to seek bail from the court within 30 days of arrest. If they fail to obtain bail within 30 days, on the 31st day, either the Prime Minister at the center or the Chief Ministers in the states will remove them from their posts, or they will automatically become legally ineligible to perform their duties. If such a leader is granted bail after the legal process, they can resume their position.
“Now, the people of the country will have to decide whether it is appropriate for a minister, Chief Minister, or Prime Minister to run the government while in jail,” he added.
While introducing the bills in Lok Sabha, Shah proposed that the three bills be sent to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for further deliberation.
Lok Sabha Ruckus
The Lok Sabha witnessed a stormy and heated face-off between the Centre and the opposition over the contentious bill.
Opposition MPs, including Asasduddin Owaisi, Manish Tewari, NK Premchandran, Dharmendra Yadav and KC Venugopal, opposed the bill, calling it “anti-constitutional”.
Opposing the bills, Owaisi said they violate the principle of separation of powers and undermine the right of the people to elect a government.
“It gives executive agencies a free run to become judge and executioner based on flimsy allegations and suspicions…This government is hell-bent on creating a Police State. This will be a death nail unleashed on the elected government. India’s Constitution is being amended to turn this country into a Police State,” he added.
Opposition MPs also tore copies of three bills and threw paper bits towards him in the Lok Sabha. Speaker Om Birla later adjourned the House amid uproar.
Shobhit Gupta is a sub-editor at News18.com and covers India and International news. He is interested in day to day political affairs in India and geopolitics. He earned his BA Journalism (Hons) degree from Ben…Read More
Shobhit Gupta is a sub-editor at News18.com and covers India and International news. He is interested in day to day political affairs in India and geopolitics. He earned his BA Journalism (Hons) degree from Ben… Read More
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