In an apparent jab at a previous argument with Mr. Dhankhar, Ms. Bachchan had introduced herself as “Jaya Amitabh Bachchan” before making her statement.
Congressman Jaya Bachchan of the Samajwadi Party and Rajya Sabha Speaker Jagdeep Dhankhar squared off in Parliament on Friday after the former declared that the latter’s “tone is not acceptable”.
“I don’t want a schooling!” an enraged Mr. Dhankhar angrily retaliated, telling Ms. Bachchan, “You may be a celebrity (but) you have to understand the decorum…”
In an apparent jab at a previous incident involving Mr. Dhankhar that led to acrimonious exchanges earlier this week, Ms. Bachchan had introduced herself as “Jaya Amitabh Bachchan” before beginning her speech (before being repeatedly interrupted by the man and told to “take your seat”).
To the chuckles of some seats, “Sir, let me introduce myself. My name is Jaya Amitabh Bachchan, and I am an actor.” I recognize your body language and expression (to applause), but please pardon me—your tone is inappropriate. We are coworkers, sir. You may be seated in the chair, but I recall my school days,” she remarked, but Mr. Dhankhar gestured for her to take a seat.
“Jayaji, take your seat… take your seat…” As the noise level in the relatively new Rajya Sabha chamber increased, Mr. Dhankhar stated repeatedly that the chamber had witnessed many heated battles.
“Honourable members… Honourable members…” With a show of restraint, Mr. Dhankhar went on to the other side of the House. “Please, just sit down. I am capable of deal with it.”
The Chair then started to counter and turned to face Ms. Bachchan.
“You’ve built a solid reputation, Jayaji. You are aware that the director has the final say over the actor, but you haven’t seen what I have from this position (the Chair). I don’t want to repeat myself every day, and I don’t want to go to school. “You say’my tone’ when I have gone above and beyond?”
“No, no, no more of this. No. It is not yours to have. “No,” the Rajya Sabha Chair firmly exclaimed.
“You have to understand decorum, even if you’re a celebrity or just anybody,” an enraged Dhankhar declared, dismissing more protests from both sides of the House.
Nothing is happening, no. Not at all… “I refuse to listen to it,” Mr. Dhankar declared.
Opposition Walk Out
Following the intense discussion, opposition members of parliament, led by Sonia Gandhi, a seasoned Congresswoman, left the room to show support for Ms. Bachchan and to emphasize their complaints that they were denied the opportunity to speak during House debates.
After making a momentous statement, opposition MPs, led by Sonia Gandhi and Derek O’Brien of the Trinamool Congress, flocked to Parliament. Several of them spoke on Ms. Bachchan’s behalf.
Opposition MPs have been insulted in Parliament and denied the opportunity to speak, according to Congress communications chief Jairam Ramesh, who told reporters this. While Dola Sen of the Trinamool Congress said that Ms Bachchan is a four-time MP and should be treated with respect, Shiv Sena (UBT) member Priyanka Chaturvedi noted that Ms Bachchan has “vast parliamentary experience… more than the Vice President.”
Ms. Bachchan used an interview with reporters to defend her stance. She said, “It was a humiliating experience…” and berated the way opposition MPs were treated, drawing a comparison to the BJP MPs’ more generous treatment.
“Anything stated by the Chairperson is permitted. Outside the Chair, the person is an MP just like the rest of us. I took issue with the Chair’s tone. Some of us are even elderly citizens; we are not schoolchildren. When Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge, the Leader of the Opposition, stood up to speak, the Chair turned off the microphone, which infuriated her.
Furthermore, anytime phrases like ‘nuisance’ or ‘you may be a celebrity but I don’t care’ are used, they are considered unparliamentary. He doesn’t have to give a damn! In Parliament today, no one has ever spoken like they do now. What’s the issue? It is really demeaning to women,” she remarked firmly.
BJP Slams Opposition Over Walk-Out
Rajya Sabha MP and BJP leader JP Nadda expressed his indignation over the opposition MPs’ walkout, labelling it “indecent and irresponsible” behaviour. “The opposition should apologize and wants to weaken the country,” he said in the by now mostly empty House.
“It is evident that their political standards have declined; instead of standing up for a party or a specific candidate, they are now against the nation. They’re trying to split up the nation,” he said.
Not just Mr. Nadda, but other BJP leaders also took aim at the opposition. Declared “I have never seen such unruly, indecent behavior of the opposition,” was Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.
“The mind is troubled and hurting today. This is offensive not just to the Chair but also to the nation’s democratic ideals. It is disrespectful to the Constitution and to democracy.”
