Ambedkar remark row: Opposition, BJP MPs scuffle in Parliament

Two BJP MPs suffered head injuries and were admitted to a hospital in Delhi

A face-off between the opposition and NDA MPs in Parliament premises over the alleged insult to B R Ambedkar left former minister Pratap Chandra Sarangi injured. The BJP accused Rahul Gandhi of pushing the senior member, a charge rejected by the Congress leader.

Trouble began when the INDIA bloc members insisted on entering Parliament through the BJP MPs holding a protest instead of using the space left empty on one side of the staircase of the Makar Dwar, used by members to enter and exit the building.

Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal said BJP MP Mukesh Rajput was also injured in the melee. Sarangi, a BJP member from Balasore in Odisha, suffered injuries on the left temple of his forehead. BJP member Nishikant Dubey accused Gandhi of pushing the senior leader.

Rejecting the BJP members’ charge, Gandhi told reporters, “I was trying to enter Parliament and the BJP MPs were stopping me, pushing me and threatening me.”

Meanwhile, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge claimed he was pushed by BJP MPs, lost his balance and was forced to sit on the ground, injuring his knees that have already undergone surgery.

Both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha were adjourned following noisy protests by the opposition seeking an apology from Home Minister Amit Shah for his remarks on B R Ambedkar.

MPs stage protest 

INDIA bloc MPs, including Kharge and Gandhi, staged a protest in the Parliament premises demanding Amit Shah’s resignation for his remarks related to the chief architect of the Constitution.

BJP-led NDA parliamentarians also carried out protests within Parliament premises, raising slogans and carrying placards demanding an apology from the opposition Congress for allegedly insulting Ambedkar. 

As the INDIA bloc parliamentarians came face to face with the ruling coalition MPs in front of the Makar Dar of Parliament, the two sides engaged in loud sloganeering in a bid to outdo each other.

The INDIA bloc members first staged a protest at B R Ambedkar’s statue in Parliament premises, carrying posters that read ‘Main Bhi Ambedkar’, ‘Jai Bhim’ and ‘Amit Shah maafi maango’.

2 BJP MPs admitted to ICU 

Following the face-off, two BJP MPs suffered head injuries and were admitted to the ICU of the Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital in New Delhi..

BJP’s MPs Sarangi and Rajput were brought to the hospital from Parliament with head injuries, the hospital’s Medical Superintendent Dr Ajay Shukla said. “Sarangi was bleeding profusely. He had a deep cut on his forehead and it had to be stitched,” the doctor said.

“Rajput also had a head injury immediately after which he lost consciousness. However, the MP was in his senses when he was brought to the hospital,” Dr Shukla said.

Both sides file police complaint

Three NDA MPs, including Anurag Thakur and Bansuri Swaraj, have filed a police complaint against Rahul Gandhi, accusing him of being involved in “physical assault and incitement” during a scuffle at Parliament, an officer said. Thakur and Swaraj, accompanied by a TDP MP met the officers at the Parliament Street Police Station and gave a written complaint.

“We have filed a complaint against Mr Rahul Gandhi for physical assault and incitement,” Thakur told media. A delegation of Congress MPs, including Digvijaya Singh, Mukul Wasnik, Rajiv Shukla and Pramod Tiwari, also filed a police complaint alleging BJP leaders misbehaved with its chief Kharge. “Eighty-four-year-old Dalit leader Mallikarjun Kharge was pushed and misbehaved with. We have come here to file a complaint against this act,” Tiwari told the media.

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