Union minister Kiren Rijiju gave a reality check to the Opposition today on their no-trust motion against Rajya Sabha chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar, which was filed with signatures of 50-plus MPs. The Opposition — which shared a stormy relation with the Rajya Sabha chairman — has accused him of partisanship.
“The NDA has majority in Rajya Sabha… The notice must be rejected, will be rejected and we will ensure that this kind of action is not accepted,” Mr Rijiju said.
“The Rajya Sabha chairman is our guide… One has to listen to the chair for proper conduction of the business of the House. The Congress and its allies have always insulted the chair,” he said. “Mr Dhankhad comes from a poor family… We have a lot of respect for him,” he added..
The notice, for which the primary mover was the Congress, was also signed — among others — by MPs from Bengal’s ruling Trinamool Congress, Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party and Akhilesh Yadav’s Samajwadi Party, parties that seldom see eye to eye with the Congress.
Leaders from Tamil Nadu’s Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, and the Rashtriya Janata Dal of Lalu Yadav also signed it.
The Opposition decided on the no-trust motion yesterday after Mr Dhankhar agreed to allow the BJP a discussion on Congress leadership’s alleged links with US billionaire investor George Soros. The BJP has accused the Congress of colluding with Soros to destabilise the country.
The Opposition Congress questioned how the chairman was allowing the ruling party members to raise the issue when he had rejected their notices seeking discussion on various subjects.
