Rahul Gandhi-Anurag Thakur spat over caste leads to ruckus in Parliament

The Lok Sabha witnessed noisy scenes on July 31 as Opposition members sought an apology from Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Anurag Thakur over his remarks on Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and persisted with their demand for a caste census.

The proceedings were adjourned for around 20 minutes till noon.

As soon as the Question Hour began, Opposition members, mainly from the Congress, were on their feet and sought to raise the issues but Speaker Om Birla did not entertain their requests.

Several members, including from the Congress, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), Samajwadi Party (SP) and Shiv Sena (UBT), trooped into the Well of the House and raised slogans even as the Question Hour continued.

At one point of time, when Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju rose to speak, Congress deputy leader Gaurav Gogoi and some of his other colleagues tore some papers and hurled them towards the Well.

Birla told the protesting members that their approach was “wrong.”

On July 30, Thakur's apparent reference to Gandhi's caste during a discussion on the Union Budget in the House had triggered a spat between the opposition and treasury benches.

“Those whose caste is not known, talk about the caste census,” Thakur said in his speech, which the Congress interpreted as a direct attack.

Apart from demanding an apology from Thakur for the remarks, the Opposition members on July 31 also sought a caste census.

Amid the din, Rijiju condemned the protests in the House and alleged the Congress has tried to weaken the country and create violence.

The Congress talks about caste day and night, he said and stressed that everyone should go by the rules and regulations of the House.

Four questions and their supplementaries were taken up during the Question Hour that went on till around 11.40 am before being adjourned till noon amid protests.

Several opposition members, including Manickam Tagore, did not ask questions even though their names were called by the Chair during the Question Hour.

When Congress member from Maharashtra Kirsan Namdeo asked a supplementary question, Birla told the protesting members not to disrupt him.

"Your party member is asking the question. But you are not allowing him to speak. This is not good," he said.

The Speaker again told Gogoi, “You have gone to his (Namdeo) seat to stop him from asking the question. You are stopping your own MP from asking the question. You should not do that.”

The Congress has termed Thakur's speech on July 30, wherein he referred to Rahul Gandhi as an “accidental Hindu” with “accidental knowledge” of the Mahabharata, a “highly abusive and unconstitutional tirade.”

Thakur's speech got a thumbs up from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who shared a video of the five-time MP's Parliament address on X along with the caption: “This speech by my young and energetic colleague, Shri @ianuragthakur is a must hear. A perfect mix of facts and humour, exposing the dirty politics of the INDI Alliance.”

Gandhi had also accused Thakur of insulting and abusing him during the debate but asserted that he would not seek any apology from Thakur, who is also a former Union minister.

"Anurag Thakur insulted me and I don't want any apology from him. Abuse or insult me as hard as you can but don't forget, we will pass the caste census in this Parliament for sure," Gandhi said in the House on July 30.

(PTI inputs)