Congress on Thursday expressed annoyance to Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar for deletion of some portions of Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge's speech from official records, saying he used no unparliamentary words and some of the expressions he employed were earlier used even by former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

Dhankar however ruled out a review saying he has already taken a call. At the start of day's proceedings in Rajya Sabha, Congress MPs were up on their feet questioning the rationale behind the expunging of remarks made on Wednesday, when similar ones were made by former prime ministers Vajpayee and Manmohan Singh in the House and which continue to be part of the proceedings. Kharge said that things said in the House as per rules and procedures during the discussion on the motion thanking the President for her address to the joint sitting of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha at the start of the Budget session cannot be expunged. "I neither used any unparliamentary word or language nor made any allegation on anyone. Yet you pick out some words... I won't say you misinterpreted them but if you had any doubt you could have sought clarification in a different fashion.

Instead, six different parts of speech were expunged,” Kharge said referring to an expression he had used on Thursday to describe Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Dhankar asked him not to do that.

But Kharge said these were the same words that were used in the House on previous occasions as well. "Vajpayee had used the same expression for (ex-Prime Minister) P V Narasimha Rao. It is still part of the record, you can see that." And when party leaders including chief whip Jairam Ramesh try to raise a point, they are cut short, alleged Kharge. "You say this is not right... You sit down... You should read. He (Ramesh) has been educated from Harvard University and knows Hindi, Kannada, English, which other language should he know.

And knows parliamentary language and yet you keep interrupting him. This is not right,” Kharge asked requesting the chairman to look into the records. When Kharge said whoever comes to his defence is interrupted by chair, Dhankar said ultimate defender of  leader of opposition (LoP) is the chair. "But that is not happening. You are expunging," Kharge replied.

Earlier, Jairam Ramesh said Kharge had only used parliamentary words and language. "What is use of speaking when it is expunged? This is wrong... We can't accept this (ruling to expunge)."  Dhankhar retorted back, "What do you mean by 'nahi man sakte' (can't accept)." "What do you mean by being so judgmental," he asked Ramesh. "I am surprised."

Pramod Tiwari said words that Kharge used to describe Prime Minister were previously spoken in Parliament as well as in state assemblies of Odisha and Karnataka. 

Former prime minister Manmohan Singh had used the same words in Rajya Sabha previously and it is part of the House records, he said. Earlier, Dhankhar said he had rejected notices given by K Keshava Rao of BRS and Sanjay Singh of AAP as they were not in order. The two wanted suspension of the listed business to take up discussion on Adani Group.