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On the first day of Parliament’s winter session, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday referred to the “sudden and unexpected exit” of former Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, while the Upper House welcomed his successor CP Radhakrishnan.
However, his comments triggered a brief protest from the Treasury benches, who argued that it was not the appropriate time.
He referred to Dhankhar, who had resigned from the post of Vice President on July 21 reportedly due to health problems.
“I am bound to mention the unexpected and sudden exit of your predecessor from the office of the Chairman, which is unprecedented in the annals of parliamentary history… The Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, as the guardian of the House, is as much of the government as the opposition,” Kharge said, triggering an uproar from the ruling party.
“I am disappointed that this House did not get a chance to bid him farewell,” he said.
Kharge also pointed out that Radhakrishnan is a relative of three-time former Lok Sabha MP CK Kuppuswami, who was a member of the Congress.
“It is better if you maintain a balance between the two sides. I wish you a successful tenure…The background you come from was mentioned by the Prime Minister, but you should also not forget that you are from the Congress family,” he said.
Kharge targeted PM Modi
“Secondly, the PM made the statement outside (Parliament). He also attacked us indirectly, we will respond to it here,” he said.
Meanwhile, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju criticized the opposition leader for mentioning Dhankhar’s resignation on a “serious occasion”.
Rijiju said, “This is a very important occasion… The Prime Minister has made very dignified remarks as part of the felicitation ceremony… Why did the Honorable Leader of Opposition mention a matter which was not necessary to be raised at this time…”
“The language you used for the former chairman, the way you insulted him, the proposal you moved, that copy is still with us…” he said.
He was referring to the proposal to remove the Vice President which was presented by the opposition parties during Dhankhar’s tenure.
Leader of the House J.P. Nadda also joined the House and called upon the members to maintain the dignity of this moment. He also pointed towards the setback suffered by the opposition alliance including Congress in the recent Bihar Assembly elections.
“This program is a sacred occasion. We must maintain the dignity of the occasion. The issue raised by the Leader of the Opposition, if we start discussing it, is irrelevant… We also have to point out that you moved no-confidence motions against him twice. This is an obstacle to the ongoing debate in a good and cordial environment.”
The first day of the winter session, which will have 15 meetings, saw repeated disruptions.
Many opposition members came to the Well raising slogans and protesting over SIR as they demanded a debate on the issue.
(with inputs from agencies)
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