Budget Session: JP Nadda jokes about ‘skill development' dept for Opposition; Jayant Singh posts video | Watch

Union Health Minister JP Nadda, on 4 February, took a swipe at the Opposition, suggesting they needed training on how to function effectively in Parliament. Nadda, who is also the leader of the House in the Rajya Sabha, suggested that the opposition parties should instead learn from him, since he had been in opposition for over 40 years.

Speaking during debate on the Motion of Thanks to the President's address in the Rajya Sabha, the former BJP president said he would ask Union minister Jayant Singh to check whether his department had any programme on “skill development” for Opposition parties.

“I want to request Jayant (Singh) to see if we have a chapter in his department on how to develop skills for Opposition parties,” Nadda remarked, pointing at Jayant Singh, who has been the Union Minister of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship since 2024. A member of the Rashtriya Lok Dal, Jayant has been a member of the Rajya Sabha from Uttar Pradesh since 2022.

Taking a dig further, Nadda said the Opposition should learn from the BJP’s own experience. “The opposition should learn from us how to behave as opposition. I just told Jairam (Ramesh) that I have been in the opposition for forty years. You should learn from me,” he said.

Jayant shared the video on his X account, writing, “Some humour for the opposition! Nadda ji’s skills on display.”

Nadda argued that the Opposition's primary responsibility was to build credibility. “The Opposition’s first job is to build credibility. You have not been able to build credibility in 11 years,” he added, in an apparent reference to the Congress-led bloc’s performance since the BJP came to power in 2014.

Lok Sabha adjourned

Nadda spoke in the Rajya Sabha while the Lok Sabha was adjourned for the day, amid protests by the opposition that continued for the third day in a row. Opposition members continued sloganeering on Wednesday over the ‘disallowing’ of Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi from speaking in the House on Tuesday, following a row over his quotation from an article citing excerpts from former Army chief MM Naravane’s unpublished memoir on the 2020 India–China conflict.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was scheduled to speak in the Lok Sabha at 5 PM, but he did not amid the protest.

Nadda said in his speech that the President's address is a powerful reflection of India's developmental journey. She has spoken about a mix of our ancient cultural heritage, the 2047 Viksit Bharat roadmap, and the aspirations of 150 crore Indians.

The former BJP President mentioned the decisive leadership under PM Modi and the transformation witnessed by the nation.

Citing examples, he referred to the GST implementation, which ushered in transparency and reforms in the indirect tax regime, effective on 22 September, resulting in massive savings for citizens.

(With agency inputs)