As Kharge seeks apology for Anurag Thakur’s remarks, Dhankhar says even PM was ‘subjected to insinuations with no remorse’

“When he was challenged by my colleagues, he was compelled to withdraw his defamatory remarks. But the damage had been done. His statements damaging my image and reputation have already been picked up by social media and other media,” the Congress president said, adding that he was forced to condemn Thakur’s “wild allegations”.

Kharge said he expected an apology from the leader of the House and that this was the “very least” the ruling party can and must do. He also said that if Thakur cannot prove his allegations, he has no right to be in Parliament and should resign. “And, if it is proved, I will resign…even if he proves 1 acre of waqf land is occupied by me or my children…I am not going to be afraid of these things,” he said.

Thakur’s reference to Kharge in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday was later expunged.

In response, Dhankhar said, “A member of Parliament uses the great privilege of being member of the House, which is a constitutional protection…because (for) anything said in the House there is no civil recourse, and no criminal action can be initiated. Immunity is granted to the member when the member speaks in the House. This is not a place for free fall of information. We cannot damage reputations.”

He further said that in the age of social media, anything that is said gets traction in microseconds, “therefore, expunction by the Chair is hardly a remedy”.

“If something is expunged, as respect to this parliamentary institution, no member should make an issue of it…I don’t want to say what has been said with respect to other very senior people holding constitutional positions including the prime minister. I would therefore urge everyone…whether one is the prime minister, leader of the House, leader of the Opposition… every member has a precious reputation to preserve. Therefore, anything which has been expunged should never get traction,” Dhankhar said, adding that political parties must “educate their members”.

Dhankhar added that “constitutionally highly positioned persons including the prime minister have been subjected to insinuations with no remorse”.

“Let us not go to a level ki khud ke ghar me aag lage, tabhi bole (we will react only when our own house is on fire). Please mark my words…your chairman was called a cheerleader by Jairam Ramesh. Imagine my pain when a senior Congress leader videographed a mimicry of the chairman on the sacred premises of this House…I expunged observations of Derek O’Brien, he put them on social media,” the Rajya Sabha chairman said.

“If you do not recognise the stature of a prime minister in his third term…you take things so contemptuously?…With the President of India, a lady of grace, a lady of devotion, sacrifices writ large on her personality? These insinuations, these aspersions, have not emanated from ordinary members. The source of these allegations is from political leadership. I was trying to be accommodative, for the respect I have for every member here. But if this is used as a political transaction, it is used to set a political narrative…,” he added.