Congress seeks Vardhan's apology for 'unparliamentary' remarks against Rahul in LS
NEW DELHI: The Congress on Friday demanded an apology from Union Minister Harsh Vardhan for making "unparliamentary" remarks in the Lok Sabha against Rahul Gandhi, who alleged that the BJP "orchestrated" the ruckus in the House to prevent him from questioning the government.
There was an uproar in the Lower House of Parliament after the Union health minister made the remarks against the former Congress chief, leading to the Lok Sabha being adjourned for the day at 2 pm.
Gandhi and other Congress MPs complained to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and demanded action against Vardhan for making "unwarranted" remarks.
BJP members prevented Gandhi from exercising his right to ask questions, the opposition party alleged and added that if Congress MPs have violated parliamentary norms, they will express regret.
"The orchestrated ruckus in Parliament today was designed to prevent me from questioning the government. The youth of India can clearly see that the PM has no clue about how to tackle the unemployment crisis.
"To protect him, the BJP will keep disrupting Parliament, preventing debate," Gandhi said on Twitter.
The Congress leader also said, "We are being stifled and we are not being allowed to speak in Parliament".
"They have suppressed our voices," he had said earlier.
Gandhi told reporters outside Parliament that Vardhan passed the remarks when he was seeking to raise the issue of the people of his Lok Sabha constituency Wayanad not getting access to medical facilities in the absence of a medical college.
"But I was prevented from doing so," he said.
Congress leader in the Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said Gandhi along with him and some other MPs met the Speaker and handed over a complaint against Vardhan for action against him.
"Gandhi pleaded that his rights and privileges should be restored and the opportunity should be given to him to ask questions.
"I have proposed that the minister concerned should apologize for his unparliamentary behaviour and have said that our member in the Well went there due to the emotional outburst triggered after the minister's remarks.
If found to be wrong, we will also express regret," he said.
"This was a pre-conceived way to defame Rahul Gandhi," Chowdhury alleged, while listing out a detailed chronology of events that led to the ruckus in Lok Sabha.
Congress leader Anand Sharma said his party and Rahul Gandhi at no stage have expressed any intent to cause any hurt to the prime minister.
He said the Question Hour is very formal and a special occasion, and Gandhi's question was listed.
He cannot be denied his right and the minister cannot violate his right, Sharma said.
"We hope the speaker will intervene firmly and timely so that the member's rights are protected," he said.
Sharma also said the BJP is the ruling political party and it cannot be equated with the country, and criticism of the BJP or that of the prime minister is "not an anti-national act".
"Criticism of the prime minister is not an anti-national act. We want to make it clear that the Congress Party and Rahul Gandhi at no stage have expressed any intent to cause any hurt to the prime minister.
"We are a party which is committed to the Gandhian values and principles; we do not encourage an expression about the desperation of the unemployed youth merely to a situation, should not be attributed as Rahul Gandhi's or the Congress Party's intent to cause any hurt to the Prime Minister's person," he said.
During the uproar, some Congress MPs, including Manickam Tagore from Tamil Nadu, protested in the Well of the House.
"The BJP obviously does not like me to speak in the House. In a completely unparliamentary manner, the Union health minister raised something that I said outside, which he has no business of doing during the Question Hour. So, we were raising it with the Speaker," Gandhi said.
"I think the main issue is that we are being stifled. We are not allowed to speak in Parliament. The health minister instead of giving an answer to my question, was raising some other issue. Where ever they can suppress our voice, they try to do that," he said.
Gandhi denied that Tagore attacked anyone and alleged that he was instead attacked.
During the ruckus Tagore came to the treasury benches and attempted to aggressively reach Vardhan, who was sitting in the second row.
Tagore in a separate complaint to the speaker alleged that there was threat to his life.
The treasury and opposition members nearly came to blows in the Lok Sabha when Union Minister Vardhan condemned in "no uncertain words" the "outlandish" remarks made by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi against Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
During the Question Hour, when Gandhi raised a question related to establishment of a medical college, Vardhan said that before answering he would like to make a statement on the Congress leader's recent comment on the prime minister.
Vardhan said he "condemns in no uncertain words" the "outlandish" remarks of Gandhi.
"Sir, please excuse me. Before I begin answering this question of dear Shri Rahul Gandhi ji.
I want to condemn in no uncertain words the outlandish language that he has used against the prime minister of the country," he said.
Speaker Birla asked the minister to stick to his answer.
As Vardhan continued reading out the statement, Congress MPs came to the Well strongly protesting against the minister's move.