In an attempt to clarify Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman’s stance on ‘Pariwar visit’ Ministry of Defence has issued a clarification through a press release. Calling it a gross misrepresentation, the MoD writes, one of the four departments of the Ministry of Defence is the Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare and in that context, it was stated that all ex-servicemen are part of the MoD ‘parivar’.
Clarification from MoD: says ‘parivar’ referred to ex-servicemen. https://t.co/yfWHmm0cgi
— Sreenivasan Jain (@SreenivasanJain) August 25, 2018
“It has also been noted that there has been gross misrepresentation with regard to the use of the term ‘parivar’ by the RM during the press conference. One of the four departments of the Ministry of Defence is the Department of Ex-Servicemen Welfare and in that context, it was stated that all ex-servicemen are part of the MoD ‘parivar’. Any other inference is misconstrued and uncalled for,” tweeted the Raksha Mantri.
A detailed account of the sequence of events to be attended by the defence minister was put out in public. The tour program of the Raksha Mantri was finalised by the district administration of Kodagu in consultation with the public representatives. On the request of the district administration, an interaction with the veterans was added to the schedule.
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The Defence Minister was trolled in media and social media over her open blast at a Karnataka Minister Sa Ra Mahesh during a press conference in Kodagu. Her behavior sparked reactions from several leaders from Karnataka including Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara who said, “It was disappointing to see you lash out at my colleague. We are not inferior to the Centre. We are partners.”
State Governments derive their powers from our Constitution not from the Centre. The Constitution has distributed powers among the Centre and States to ensure an equitable partnership between both. We are not inferior to the Centre. We are partners @nsitharaman
— Dr. G Parameshwara (@DrParameshwara) August 25, 2018
After the field visit, Sitharaman was interacting with ex-servicemen who had been adversely affected by the floods. During the meeting, the District incharge minister had objected and insisted that meeting with the officials be conducted first. Calling the meeting with the ex-servicemen an essential part of the program, the Raksha Mantri said, it was important to meet them.
