Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who is facing flak over his act of filming TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee mimicking Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar, said the video is in his phone and the media is discussing that but not the real issues such as suspension of Opposition MPs and unemployment.
“150 of our MPs have been thrown out (of the House) but there is no discussion on that in the media. There is no discussion on Adani, no discussion on Rafale, no discussion on unemployment,” he said.
The TMC MP’s act during Opposition’s protest has triggered a massive political storm, with Dhankhar calling it an insult of his farmer background and the Jat community to which he belongs.
President Droupadi Murmu said that she was dismayed over the Vice President’s humiliation in Parliament complex and suggested MPs should behave in a dignified and courteous manner.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also expressed his solidarity towards the VP and called him to express his pain over the incident.
However, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has rejected Dhankhar’s assertion that it was an insult to the jat community.
“The Rajya Chairman said it is an insult to farmers…the Chairman should provide security to the MPs inside the House…now if I am not allowed to speak, should I say it is because I am Dalit?… One should not provoke people, the Congress chief said.