Protest, counterprotests and brawls, and now a police case against Congress MP Rahul Gandhi – over Home Minister Amit Shah’s “Ambedkar is the fashion” remark – roiled Parliament Thursday, with the BJP and Congress trading allegations of each using force to prevent rivals from entering the building.
Two BJP MPs – Pratap Sarangi and Mukesh Rajput – were “seriously injured” by Rahul Gandhi, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju claimed, as the tense political stand-off rumbled on outside Makar Dawar, the Parliament’s main door. Mr Rijiju then tore into Mr Gandhi; “… how can he use force in Parliament? Under which law does he have the power to physically assault other MPs?”
And in a sarcastic quip aimed at Mr Gandhi – who holds a black belt in Aikido, a contemporary Japanese martial art – Mr Rijiju said, “Have you learnt karate, kung fu, to beat other MPs?”
“Parliament is not a wrestling arena,” he went on, declaring two of his colleagues had been injured and that he intends to visit them in hospital. Mr Rijiju also demanded an apology from Mr Gandhi.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, meanwhile, has reportedly spoken to Mr Sarangi and Mr Rajput.
“Pushed, Shoved Me”: Rahul Gandhi
Mr Gandhi, meanwhile, has responded strongly to Mr Sarangi’s claims. He told reporters it was, in fact, a group of BJP MPs who were blocking his entry into Parliament, and that they were pushing and shoving him and Congress boss Mallikarjun Kharge, and that prompted the clash.
“I was trying to go inside… but BJP MPs were trying to stop me; they pushed me away and threatened me. Yes (in response to a question about Mr Kharge) … that also happened. But we do not get affected by this jostling. This is Parliament and we have the right to go inside,” he said.
Mr Gandhi also told reporters, “This (the shoving) might be on your camera.”
“Rahul Gandhi Pushed An MP”
The injured BJP MP, Mr Sarangi, said he fell and hurt his head after a third person (unidentified at this time) fell on him. Mr Sarangi said Mr Gandhi had pushed this person who then fell on him.
“Rahul Gandhi pushed an MP who fell on me, after which I fell down…I was standing near the stairs when Rahul Gandhi came and pushed an MP who then fell on me…” he told reporters from a wheelchair and with a medical professional holding a bandage to the side of his head.
Visuals from outside Parliament then showed Mr Sarangi being taken to hospital in an ambulance.
All of this follows Mr Shah’s remarks about Dr BR Ambedkar.
Amit Shah’s “Ambedkar” Remark Row
On Monday, in concluding remarks on a two-day debate on the Constitution, Mr Shah quipped, “It has become the fashion to say ‘Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar…’ If they (the opposition) took God’s name so many times, they will get a place in heaven.”
The remark triggered a furious pushback from the opposition, with the Congress and the Samajwadi Party leading the charge, and demanding Mr Shah apologise and resign his post. Meanwhile, the Trinamool and the Congress have moved privilege motions against Amit Shah in the Rajya Sabha.
READ | Congress 2nd To Move Privilege Motion Against Amit Shah
Congress boss Mallikarjun Kharge has been particularly vocal, demanding that Prime Minister Modi, “If (he) has any respect for Babasaheb Ambedkar, he should drop Shah from the Cabinet.”
READ | “If PM Respects Ambedkar…”: Congress’ Kharge Targets Amit Shah
On Wednesday evening a combative Mr Shah – A combative Amit Shah – Prime Minister Modi’s No 2 and one of the most powerful figures in the BJP – seemed to take the unusual step of publicly defending his statement, declaring his rivals had “distorted facts” after being stung by “examples of how the Constitution was attacked and wounded by the Congress (when in power)”.
READ | “Congress Anti-Ambedkar, Twisted My Words”: Amit Shah Responds
He also refused to step down, saying, “Khargeji is asking for my resignation. If it will make him happy, I will.. but it won’t end his problems. He will have to sit in the same place (the opposition) for 15 years…”
PM’s Defence Of Amit Shah
And in an even more unusual move, one perhaps underlining the impact the opposition’s attack is having on the BJP – the Prime Minister and his members of his cabinet have come out in defence.
“If the Congress and its rotten ecosystem think malicious lies can hide their misdeeds of several years, especially their insult towards Dr Ambedkar, they are gravely mistaken!” the PM said.
READ | PM Leads BJP Fightback As Opposition Ups Ante In Ambedkar Row
“People of India have seen, time and again, how one party, led by one dynasty, has indulged in every possible dirty trick to obliterate the legacy of Dr Ambedkar…” he said on X.
With input from agencies
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