The Congress and the ruling BJP clashed in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday leading to repeated adjournments over Opposition member and former Union Minister Kumari Selja’s claim that she was asked about her caste in a Gujarat temple, a charge which the Government vehemently denied.
Bedlam ensued when Power Minister Piyush Goyal charged the main Opposition party for “manufacturing problems and discrimination” and his colleague Minister of State Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi accused the member of misleading the House.
Reacting sharply to the Ministers’ statements, Congress members led by Selja trooped into the well demanding an apology from the Government and raised slogans leading to at least four adjournments in the pre-lunch and post-lunch session. leaders of various political parties later agreed to keep the issue pending till Thursday as the House had earlier decided to discuss the situation arising due to unprecedented floods in Tamil Nadu.
Acrimonious scenes began soon after leader of the House Arun Jaitley referred to Selja issue and said she had in fact said very “complimentary words” during her visit to the Dwarka temple as Minister of Culture in February 2013.
He said Selja had also written positive things about her experience at the temple and there was no complaint and read out her written comments in the visitors’ book of the temple. Her comments said, “With lord Krishna’s blessings, had a very good darshan. The upkeep and maintenance of the premises is excellent. May the lord bless all those who are fortunate enough to come here for his blessings.”
Selja shot back and said she was not referring to the main Dwarka temple, but ‘Bet Dwarka,’ and asked Jaitley not to mislead the House. “Please don’t do this, leader of the House. It doesn’t behove,” she added.
Jaitley’s assertion came two days after Selja, while participating in a debate on the Constitution on Monday, had alleged that she had faced discrimination at the temple when she visited there as a Union Minister some years back as she was asked about her caste. She had also alleged that “this was also a form of the Gujarat model,” an apparent attack on Narendra Modi.
The leader of the House had then asked her whether she had raised the issue at that time with the then Chief Minister Narendra Modi or Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. To this, she had refused to reply, saying, “I choose not to answer that.”
Meanwhile, as arguments ensued on Wednesday between Jaitley and Selja, Goyal said Congress members were trying to create “manufactured problems” and “manufactured discrimination”. His comments stoked agitated Congress members who rushed into the well. Amidst uproar, TMC leader Derek O’Brien said the ruling party members unnecessarily made a provocative remark and it should be withdrawn immediately.
Deputy Chairman PJ Kurien tried to restore order but Congress, left and TMC members who were in the well refused to oblige him forcing the first adjournment for ten minutes followed by another for 20 minutes. Similar scenes were witnessed during the Question Hour and Chairman Hamid Ansari adjourned the proceedings till after lunch. The post lunch session also saw another adjournment
Kurien later called Jaitley, leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad and leaders of other parties besides Selja into the Chamber in a bid to resolve the impasse. Naqvi suggested that if the mention of Dwarka temple is expunged, then any remarks made that upset Selja should also be expunged.