New Delhi:

The BJP will never change the Preamble of the Indian Constitution or end reservation, Union Minister Rajnath Singh said in an exclusive interview with NDTV. Mr Singh said that the Congress had changed the Preamble in 1976, but is now trying to unnecessarily target the BJP and make it a poll issue.

“In 1976, the first time a change was made to the Preamble of the Indian Constitution. And that was done by Indira Gandhi,” Mr Singh told NDTV.

“And our constituent assembly was then of the consensus that amendments can be made to the Constitution as required. Congress and other political parties have done this a lot. But there is no question of making changes in the preamble. But they did it, and are now trying to blame us. The BJP does not even think about it,” he added.

Rajnath Singh’s remarks come after claims by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi that the BJP will “tear up and throw away” the Constitution if it retains power. Some other Congress functionaries had expressed apprehensions that the BJP may drop the word “secularism” from the Preamble of the Constitution.

Mr Singh also said that the ruling party has no plans of ending caste-based reservation, but will never give reservation based on religion.

“Why would we end reservation? This country needs reservation for OBC, ST. They (Opposition) are the ones talking about giving reservations on the basis of religion. But we say that in no situation will we give religion-based reservation as the Constitution does not allow it,” the Defence Minister said.

The BJP, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is hoping to win their third ongoing term. Six of the seven phases of voting for the Lok Sabha elections have already been held, with results to be announced on June 4 after the final round of voting on June 1.

New Delhi:

Parliamentarians will be welcomed into the new Parliament building tomorrow with a special hamper. The special session of Parliament began today at the old premises and will move to the revamped complex tomorrow.

The hamper comprises a jute bag containing a copy of the Constitution, a stamp, and a commemorative coin. The names of the MPs are inscribed on the jute bags.

Parliament proceedings will move to the new building tomorrow. The old building has witnessed some historic events, including the adoption of the Constitution. It was completed in 1927 and is now 96 years old. Over the years, it was found to be inadequate for present-day requirements.

On Monday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tributes to “every brick” of the old building in his speech in Lok Sabha and said that the MPs will enter the new building with “new hope and confidence”.

The new Parliament building was inaugurated by PM Modi this May.

The new complex can comfortably seat 888 members in the Lok Sabha chamber and 300 in the Rajya Sabha chamber. For a joint sitting of both the Houses, 1,280 MPs can be accommodated in the Lok Sabha chamber.

The triangular-shaped four-storeyed building has a built-up area of 64,500 square metres. It has three main gates – Gyan Dwar, Shakti Dwar, and Karma Dwar – and separate entrances for VIPs, MPs, and visitors.