In this combo of two pictures, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi (R) and BJP MP Anurag Thakur in the House during the Monsoon session of Parliament, in New Delhi, Tuesday.
Credit: PTI Photo
New Delhi: The Lok Sabha saw an uproar on Tuesday when senior BJP leader Anurag Thakur, in a rebuttal to LoP Rahul Gandhi questioning the absence of OBCs and Dalits in the Budget team, made an apparent reference to Gandhi’s "caste".
An incensed Gandhi said that he was “insulted” but that it did not bother him. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, too, questioned Thakur’s behavior leading to wide protests among the Opposition benches.
During his speech on Tuesday, the Hamirpur MP, in a reference to Gandhi said that there is a lot of talk about caste in the House.
In response, Gandhi sought to intervene and said that those who speak on behalf of backward classes are usually maligned. “Whoever raises the issue of Dalits, adivasis and backward castes in this country are usually abused .. And I am happy to take it in,” Gandhi said. He added that akin to the Mahabharata where Arjun was fixated only in the eyes of the fish, he, too, is focused on the caste census.
“You can abuse us all you want, but we will pass the caste census here,” Gandhi asserted. “Anurag Thakur ji has abused me .. he has insulted me, but I do not seek his apology. Let him abuse me, I am happy to take it.”
Soon after, Akhilesh Yadav sought to intervene. “The member is a senior face of a big party .. he has been a minister. Lots of issues have been raised in the House, we have spoken about Mahabharata, too, here, but I have a question .. How did he ask for the caste of a member in the House? How could he,” the Samajwadi Party chief asserted.
Jagdambika Pal, who was in the chair, said Thakur's remarks on caste stand expunged. “No one will ask for anyone’s caste in the House," he added.
Thakur, in his speech, said that some who are “accidental Hindus” were speaking about Mahabharat on the floor of the House on Monday. “Maybe he has not yet read or seen Mahabharata but Abhimanyu was killed by seven people, not six like he had mentioned,” Thakur said, pointing to Gandhi’s speech on Monday.
“If he wants to know about Mahabharat and chakravyuh, he should contact an elected leader of his own party who has written a novel mixing the story of Indian Independence with Mahabharata. Shashi Tharoor ji should tell him (Gandhi) who did he mean by Dhritarashtra, who did he say is Kaurava and who is Duryodhan,” Thakur said. The BJP lawmaker was pointing at Congress MP Shashi Tharoor’s 1989 book, The Great Indian Novel, where Tharoor indicates that Jawaharlal Nehru is Dhritarashtra and Indira Gandhi is “Duryodhani”.
Tharoor, in response, said that the novel was a “satirical” one. “Sadly, the gentleman had missed the satire. Under Rule 353, the member has no business taking my name repeated. He has revived a 35 year old book ... There are many subsequent books I have written, he did not raise this,” Tharoor said.