New Delhi: The Lok Sabha is adjourned until 4pm amidst heavy protests by the BJP. The adjournment stemmed from an uproar by BJP MPs in the lower house demanding an apology from Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi on MP Adhir Chowdhury’s ‘Rashtrapatni’ remark.
Union Minister Smriti Irani slammed the Congress and demanded an apology for maliciously targeting President Droupadi Murmu and said the country knows that the opposition party is “anti-tribal, anti-Dalit and anti-women”.
Stressing that the title ‘Rashtrapati’ is gender-agnostic, Finance minister Sitharaman said Congress president Sonia Gandhi, “being a woman herself”, must apologise to the nation and the President of India, who is “a self-made woman”.
The Rajya Sabha is also adjourned and will resume proceedings in the afternoon. Prior to the adjournment three more Rajya Sabha MPs including AAP MP Sushil Kumar Gupta have been suspended for the remainder of this week.
The Parliament witnessed a storm of arguments on Thursday after Congress leader in Lok Sabah, Adhir Ranjan used the term Rashtrapatni. Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhur responding to the allegations by the opposition said, “There is no question of apologising. I had mistakenly said ‘Rashtrapatni’. The ruling party in a deliberate design is trying to make a mountain out of a molehill.”
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