Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Aug 8: Floor leaders of parties in the opposition alliance INDIA in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday submitted a privilege motion against the Leader of the House and minister Piyush Goyal for addressing them as “traitors.”
Senior Congress leader and Rajya Sabha MP Jairam Ramesh said nothing less than an apology from him on the floor of the House would satisfy the opposition.
The chairman of the House has promised to go through the records and delete if any such remark had been made by Goyal during his address to the House. Goyal is also learnt to have told the chairman to remove from the record if he had used any unparliamentary words in his speech.
The opposition leaders, however, were confident that Goyal did addressed the opposition leaders as “traitors” while raising the issue of Congress party’s alleged links with a media house which was supposed to be spreading Chinese propaganda.
General Secretary in-charge of Communications for the Congress party, took to X (formerly Twitter), to express that “Nothing less than an apology from him on the floor of the House, when it is order, will do.” Further, the INDIA bloc staged a walkout of Rajya Sabha for the rest of the day, citing Narendra Modi-led Central government’s “continued refusal to allow an immediate discussion on Manipur violence issue, on the basis of a mutually negotiated Motion,” Ramesh shared on X. “The continued refusal of the Leader of the House Piyush Goyal to apologise for highly objectionable remarks he made against leaders of INDIA parties,” was another reason behind the walkout.
Among the parties whose leaders gave the notice privilege motion were the Congress, TMC, AAP, RJD, DMK, RJD, JDU, NCP and the Left parties.
“Today at 1300 hrs, the floor leaders of INDIA parties in the Rajya Sabha submitted a privilege motion against Leader of the House Piyush Goyal for addressing the Opposition as all of them “traitors”. Nothing less than an apology from him on the floor of the House, when it is in order, will do,” Mr Ramesh tweeted.
Rajya Sabha proceedings were adjourned for the third time till 2 pm and later for the day amid opposition protest over the ruling party charge that the Congress and its alliance bloc were pushing Chinese propaganda in India.
“Congress and its arrogant coalition parties are supporting Chinese media and hatching conspiracy. This is a serious issue. This issue needs be discussed in the House,” Piyush Goyal had said. He further charged that “arrogant coalition parties are helping each other. They are funding the propaganda against the country. What relation Rahul Gandhi has with Communist party and China. The country should know whether they are with India or China…” Goyal made the remark when BJP MP Sudhanshu Trivedi raised the New York Times Report on Newsclick on alleged Chinese propaganda.
The chairman said he would go through the records and if there was anything unparliamentary, that cannot remain as part of the records of the House. He said he would remove if there is anything which is unparliamentary. Goyal on his part also said he takes back any words which may not be parliamentary and urged the chair to remove the same from the records.
Senior Congress leader Digvijay Singh said, “Please examine his (Goyal’s) statement. Charges which he levelled against us calling traitor and charge of money….Sir, what is all that?”
Meanwhile, in another development the Rajya Sabha deputy chairman Harivansh said he would initiate a probe into the claims of the union home minister Amit Shah that at least four MPs have complained about inclusion of their names in a proposed select committee without their consent.
The Select Committee was proposed by Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MP Raghav Chadha in the Upper House for a re-look into the Delhi services which was passed by the House by 131 to 102 votes. After the deputy chairman read out the names to be included in the proposed committee, Home Minister Amit Shah said members had complained their names were included without their signatures in the proposal moved by the AAP leader.
Terming it a breach of privilege of the House, he said the matter should be referred to the Privileges Committee. A day later, AAP leader Sanjay Singh protested the Home minister’s statements, accusing him of spreading rumours. “Don’t you know that no one’s signature is required to propose the name in the Select Committee? Do not spread lies and rumours, Home Minister,” Singh said.
