Hitting out at the culture of sycophancy, Prime Minister Narendra Modi Friday asked BJP MPs to shun the practice of touching his feet and that of other leaders.
Addressing party’s newly elected MPs in the Central Hall of Parliament at the meeting of the BJP Parliamentary Party, Modi asked them not to touch anyone’s feet or indulge in sycophancy, it is learnt.
Sources said Modi was referring to new MPs touching his feet when they met him and asked them to work hard as Parliamentarians.
“Don’t touch my feet,” was Modi’s directive to the new MPs, in an apparent dig at the Congress, which the BJP has often targeted for the alleged “sycophancy” surrounding the Gandhi family, and some regional parties steered by political families where such practices are prevalent.
The sources said Modi asked his MPs to be armed with knowledge and be good Parliamentarians by enhancing their skills in the “temple of democracy”.
Sources said Mr Modi, party patriarch LK Advani, BJP president Rajnath Singh, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Venkaiah Naidu and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley sat on the dais facing the other MPs, among whom seniors like Sushma Swaraj, Nitin Gadkari and Murli Manhoar Joshi sat in the front row.
