Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Mar 18: For a change from the noisy protests and heated arguments all the time, the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday witnessed some lighter moments after the Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge’s light-hearted remarks aimed at the former prime minister HD Deve Gowda.
Mr Kharge, also the national president of the Congress, was delivering the farewell address to 37 retiring members of the Upper House including Mr Deve Gowda when he made the remarks about his association with the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA).
Noting how his time in the House has enriched him, Mr Kharge had a dig at Mr Deve Gowda pointing out that he was the Prime Minister and had also served the country in several other capacities. “I have known him for 54 years and have worked with him. But I don’t know what happened. He dated us, loved us, but married Prime Minister Narendra Modi,” he said, drawing a round of laughter from across the House. Mr Modi, who was at the time present in the Rajya Sabha, was seen laughing too.
Deve Gowda was the Prime Minister for less than a year after the 1996 Lok Sabha polls. The Congress supported the United Front government he headed. HD Deve Gowda’s JDS tied up with the Congress in Karnataka for the 2018 state polls, and the alliance won. Deve Gowda’s son, HD Kumaraswamy, became Chief Minister, but the state government collapsed in 2019 after several Congress and JDS MLAs rebelled. JDS later allied with the BJP, explaining Kharge’s dig.
Kharge said he has had a long association with Pawar and DMK’s Tiruchi Siva, too, and he was glad that they are returning to the Rajya Sabha for another term. The Congress president also took a potshot at Union Minister and RPI (A) chief Ramdas Athawale. “He always praises Modiji in his poems. He doesn’t know any other poem,” he said, drawing smiles from Congress members.
Earlier, Prime Minister Modi thanked retiring Rajya Sabha MPs for their contributions and wished them well, saying that there was “no full stop in politics.” “Discussions take place on various issues in the House, and every member plays a unique role in them. In moments like these, a common sense of respect is generated, rising above party lines. To the leaders who are leaving the House after the end of their tenure, I want to say that there is no full stop in politics. The future is waiting for you. Your experience and contribution will always be remembered,” the PM said.
He advised newly elected MPs to learn from veterans like Deve Gowda, Kharge and Sharad Pawar. “HD Deve Gowda ji, Mallikarjun Kharge ji, and Sharad Pawar ji are senior leaders who have spent more than half of their lives in parliamentary work. Newly elected MPs should learn from them,” he said.
Referring to Athawale, the Prime Minister said, “Sometimes we used to hear that there is a lot of opportunity for humour and satire in the House. These days, perhaps it is gradually decreasing. But our Athawale is evergreen.” The RPI (A) chief is also returning for another term in the Rajya Sabha.
Meanwhile, in a derogatory language, the BJP Lok Sabha member and Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut on Wednesday called Congress leader Rahul Gandhi a “tapori” (vagabond), saying that he makes women uncomfortable. Her remarks come after 84 former bureaucrats, 116 veterans and four lawyers wrote an open letter, asking Rahul Gandhi to apologise over the incident of him having tea and biscuits at the Makar Dwar entrance to Parliament during the ongoing Budget Session.
“We women feel very uncomfortable seeing him… he come like a vagabond… and refers to anyone disrespectfully… if someone is giving an interview, he makes hooting calls,” Kangana Ranaut said while speaking to reporters in Parliament complex on Wednesday. She said Rahul Gandhi should see the conduct and behaviour of his sister, Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, “which is very good.” “Rahul Gandhi himself is a shame,” she said.
Led by the former Jammu and Kashmir DGP SP Vaid, the signatories stated that the March 12 incident was “deeply concerning” and reflected “conscious disregard for parliamentary authority.” On March 12, Rahul Gandhi was seen sharing tea and snacks with his colleagues during a protest at the Makar Dwar entrance to Parliament.
SP Vaid said that Rahul Gandhi’s behaviour in Parliament is not becoming of a Leader of the Opposition and shows a “sense of entitlement and arrogance.” “84 former bureaucrats, 116 veterans and former lawyers have addressed this letter to the public stating that Rahul Gandhi’s behaviour in Parliament is not becoming of a Leader of the Opposition, which is a very responsible post.
“His behaviour shows a sense of entitlement and arrogance. He indulges in theatrics; he sits on the steps of the Parliament and sips tea amid sloganeering. I think Rahul Gandhi does not understand the importance of the post of LoP,” Mr Vaid said. He demanded an apology from Rahul Gandhi, urging him to fulfil the role of a responsible LoP.
