Last Updated:
Parliament Winter Session: Parliament was rocked by “assault” allegations by both the BJP and Congress against each other as the Opposition undertook a protest march against Amit Shah.
Parliament Winter Session (Photo: X/Priyanka Gandhi)
Parliament Winter Session: The penultimate day of the Parliament’s Winter Session was struck by a massive political faceoff between the BJP and the Opposition, both of who traded “assault” charges against each other.
Dramatic scenes were witnessed in the Parliament Complex on Thursday as Opposition MPs carried out protest marches. Both the ruling as well as Opposition sides alleged “assault” by each other.
Rajya Sabha LoP Mallikarjun Kharge wrote to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla demanding an inquiry into the alleged “assault” by the BJP MPs during the protest march.
What Were The Allegations?
The matter pertains to the BJP’s allegations that Rahul Gandhi pushed its MP Pratap Sarangi during the INDIA bloc’s protest in the Parliament Complex this morning against Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s remarks on BR Ambedkar in Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.
Rahul Gandhi denied the allegations and alleged that the BJP MPs were rushing him as he tried to enter the Parliament building.
“They were threatening us. We are not scared of this. We have the right to enter the Parliament,” he told reporters.
VIDEO | “I was just trying to go inside the Parliament and BJP MPs were trying to stop me. This is what has happened… This is the entrance of Parliament House and we have a right to go inside,” says Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) as BJP leaders accuse him of shoving… pic.twitter.com/hHsZlaNAyM— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) December 19, 2024
BJP Alleges Assault By Rahul Gandhi On Pratap Sarangi
BJP MP Sarangi was seen sitting in the complex with BJP MPs around him. Party MP Nishikant Dubey was seen pacifying his colleague and telling Rahul Gandhi, who walked into the picture, “Are you not ashamed Rahul Gandhi? You do hooliganism. You pushed an old man.”
Rahul Gandhi replied, “He has pushed me”, to which the BJP MPs retorted, “He has not pushed you”.
Several BJP MPs and Ministers rushed to the RML Hospital in Delhi to see Sarangi who was shifted there for the treatment.
Opposition MPs Conduct Protest March
The Congress MPs held a protest march on the premises and chanted “Jai Bhim” slogans. Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi joined the protesting MPs and shouted slogans with them, holding placards in her hand. Rajya Sabha LoP Mallikarjun Kharge was also seen taking part in the protest march, raising fists, and chanting slogans.
The Congress alleged that the BJP MPs “obstructed” their march, holding a stick in their hands.
Congress MP Manickam Tagore alleged that the BJP MPs walked into the Parliament premises with batons in their hands, and linked the incident with the party’s relationship with the RSS.
He said that the BJP could do anything to save Amit Shah.
“The Opposition MPs were protesting peacefully. The BJP MPs reached here with an RSS baton. It is for the first time that they came into the Parliament with sticks. RSS and stick have a relation of 100 years. They can do anything to save Amit Shah. We will meet the Speaker and demand an investigation into this. They are conspiring to save Amit Shah from apologising,” he said.
BJP Lashes Out At Rahul Gandhi Over Sarangi Episode
Reacting to the Sarangi injury incident, Union Minister Giriraj Singh alleged that Congress and Rahul Gandhi have come down to hooliganism in which the BJP MP was injured.
Union Minister Bhupender Yadav slammed Rahul Gandhi for the “arrogance” and said that instead of apologising for “injuring an aged MP”, he “walks away with accusations”.
“So much for being mohabbat ki dukan. Such entitlement! Congress continues to be blot on democracy,” Yadav posted on X.
Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said that Rahul Gandhi’s “arrogance, sense of entitlement and feudal behaviour” has injured elected MPs and “put life in danger”.
“Strongly disapprove his behaviour and tantrums. No amount of condemnation is enough for his juvenile act. The least he owes is an apology,” he said.
