Thursday, 19 December 2024
Thursday, 19 December 2024
The Parliament premises witnessed a dramatic showdown on Thursday as members of the BJP and Congress engaged in protests, ignited by Union home minister Amit Shah's controversial remarks about BR Ambedkar during a parliamentary session.
Tensions escalated as MPs from both parties confronted each other, holding placards adorned with images of Ambedkar. Alleged clash resulted in injuries to BJP MP Pratap Chandra Sarangi, who was reportedly hurt when Congress leader Rahul Gandhi pushed another MP into him. Sarangi was taken to a hospital for treatment.
The Congress accused the BJP of lowering the dignity of Parliament and claimed that BJP MPs pushed its party President Mallikarjun Kharge and "physically manhandled" leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi.
The Congress also said BJP MPs had sticks in their hands and Kharge was threatened and pushed.
Kharge, leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, wrote to Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla, claiming he was pushed by BJP MPs in Parliament premises following which he lost his balance.
"I was physically pushed by BJP MPs; lost my balance and was forced to sit down on ground in front of Makar Dwar... This inflicted injuries on my knees which have already undergone surgery," Kharge said.
Kharge asked the speaker to order an inquiry into the BJP MPs "pushing" him, and said it was an assault not just on him but on the Rajya Sabha LoP and the Congress president.
In a post in Hindi on X, Kharge added, "After insulting Baba Saheb Dr. Ambedkar ji, Narendra Modiji also gets the dignity of the Parliament insulted. BJP MPs were armed with placards with thick sticks and were made to push and shove to stop the peaceful protest of INDIA alliance MPs so that their animosity towards Babasaheb, Parliament, Constitution and democracy is not exposed." "But we will stand firm, we will not tolerate any derogatory comments on Babasaheb. Everyone in the country will strongly oppose BJP/RSS," he said.
The Congress filed a complaint at Parliament Street police station alleging BJP leaders misbehaved with its chief Mallikarjun Kharge, an officer said.
The delegation of Congress MPs, including Digvijaya Singh, Mukul Wasnik, Rajiv Shukla and Pramod Tiwari, filed the complaint visiting the station in person, the officer said.
This was after the BJP's Nagaland MP - Phangnon Konyak - accused the Congress' Rahul Gandhi of misbehaving with her as she and her colleagues were carrying out their protest. In a letter to Congress boss Mallikarjun Kharge, she said the Congress leader had "misbehaved with her in a loud voice and his physical proximity... was so close that I, being a lady MP, felt extremely uncomfortable".
Two BJP MPs, Anurag Thakur and Bansuri Swaraj - marching on the same police station to file a case against Rahul Gandhi.
"FIR must be filed against Rahul Gandhi under the SC/ST Prevention of Atrocities Act for assaulting BJP MP S Phangnon Konyak, a woman and Tribal. Additionally, another case must be filed for outraging the modesty and undermining dignity of a woman in the precinct of Parliament," BJP’s IT cell head Amit Malviya posts on X.
He further said, "This is an unprecedented situation where the Leader of Opposition has been accused of improper behaviour by a woman MP."
Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Thursday termed the BJP's allegations that her brother and party leader Rahul Gandhi pushed a BJP MP a "conspiracy to save Home Minister Amit Shah's skin". She also accused the ruling party MPs of indulging in "goondagardi" to stop peacefully protesting opposition members from entering Parliament.
"We have been protesting for so many days and there is always space for people to enter freely. Peaceful protests are taking place daily from 10.30 am to 11 am. Today, for the first time, they (BJP MPs) protested and stopped everyone and then indulged in pushing and 'goodagardi' (hooliganism)'," she told reporters in Parliament premises.
"And now to save Amit Shah's skin they have started this conspiracy that 'bhaiya' has pushed someone. Right before my eyes, Kharge ji was pushed and he fell on the ground. Then they pushed a CPI(M) MP who fell on Kharge ji. I thought it would have broken his leg as it was visible from his face that he was hurt," the Congress general secretary said.
Parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju alleged Rahul Gandhi had “pushed” a female MP and “charged" at her "physically”. He said that Rahul Gandhi pushed two more members with such force that they were bleeding and had been hospitalised.
"This behaviour of the Congress party is shameful beyond our belief. We have numbers. We are not going to be afraid but we don't want to plummet the standard of Parliament by manhandling to this low. I plead to you -- all Congress members -- that the entire Congress should apologise to this House and the nation,” Rijiju said.
In a sarcastic quip aimed at Gandhi - who holds a black belt in Aikido, a Japanese martial art, he said "Have you learnt karate, kung fu, to beat other MPs? Parliament is not a wrestling arena and a member of Parliament cannot raise hands on any other member."
“The way Rahul Gandhi has beaten our two MPs, our MPs are agitated. Had we also manhandled in the same manner then what would have been the situation? "We have numbers. We are not cowards but if our people will also start manhandling like Rahul Gandhi then how will democracy work. Therefore the entire Congress party should not only apologise to the Parliament but to the entire nation,” Rijiju said.
Jammu and Kashmir chief minister Omar Abdullah on Thursday dismissed the BJP claims that leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi pushed two ruling party members in Parliament premises, saying it was not in his nature to be nasty or rude.
"I know Rahul, he would not push anyone much less a Member of Parliament. It's simply not in his nature to be rude or nasty to anyone," Abdullah posted on his X handle.
Leader of the House in Rajya Sabha and the BJP party President Jagat Prakash Nadda said that the discussion held on the Constitution in Parliament had exposed the Congress on how it twisted and misused it in the last 75 years and therefore the party members have "lost their mind".
“Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, in an undemocratic way, pushed our members who were protesting in a peaceful manner in which our two members were injured and are admitted to Ram Manohar Hospital. Their treatment is going on. The way the leader of the opposition pushed our sister, Konyak, who is a member of the House, amounted to physical and mental harassment. It is a matter of privilege,” Nadda said.
According to Congress general secretary Venugopal, the "farcical drama" in Parliament House was a grand display of the "BJP’s ‘Save Ambedkar-virodhi Amit Shah’ mission".
For the past 15 days, the Opposition has been peacefully protesting in Parliament House on various issues and no incidents of mishandling or disruptions have been reported, he said.
"The speaker explicitly instructed that the passage to the House must not be blocked. Security guards were entrusted with managing the entrance. We have always complied, never obstructed the way, and cooperated peacefully with security personnel.
Today, after our peaceful dharna at Prerna Sthal and a walk around Samvidhan Sadan carrying posters, we were shocked to witness BJP MPs blocking entrances with sticks attached to posters," he said.
Strangely, no security guards were present despite this being a violation of the Speaker’s directives, Venugopal said.
"In a disgraceful turn of events, the stick-wielding BJP MPs pushed the Hon’ble Congress president, a senior and respected leader, while the LoP in Lok Sabha was also prevented and pushed from entering the House," he alleged.
"These unruly BJP MPs were clearly the ones responsible for vitiating the atmosphere and lowering the dignity of Parliament. No theatrics or trickery will save them from accountability for the disrespectful comments made by Amit Shah against Babasaheb Ambedkar." He said the party will take the issue to the streets across the country until the Home minister steps down for his remarks on Ambedkar.
Dhankar said that he has received communication from Konyak and she also met in his chamber.
“I am looking into it. She was literally in tears.... she could never believe that as a lady member she could suffer so much at the hands of another member of Parliament,” Dhankar.
Both the treasury bench and opposition members continued sloganeering during the statements made by treasury bench members.
Congress' deputy leader in the Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi said, "Today I saw the BJP MPs being hostile and threatening towards Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and LoP Rahul Gandhi. The BJP MPs had sticks in their hands. I saw with my own eyes how Mallikarjun Kharge was being threatened and pushed."
Odisha chief minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Thursday said he was praying for the speedy recovery of BJP's Balasore MP Pratap Sarangi, claiming that he got injured because of the "irresponsible and objectionable" behaviour of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in Parliament.
"MP Pratap Sarangi was brought to the hospital, with a deep cut on his head, and till the time of arrival at the hospital, had lost a lot of blood. Doctors have stitched the cut for him," said the doctors of Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital in Delhi.
Majhi said "such actions" of Gandhi were not only "unacceptable" but also an insult to the "sacred house of democracy".
"Due to irresponsible and objectionable behaviour of Rahul Gandhi in Parliament, our senior party leader and Lok Sabha MP from Balasore Shri @pcsarangi ji got injured. Such actions of Rahul Gandhi are not only unacceptable but it is also an insult to the sacred house of democracy," he said in a post on X.
"I pray for the speedy recovery of Shri @pcsarangi ji and strongly condemn such acts in Parliament. This type of violence has no place in a democracy," he added.
