RAJYA SABHA Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar on Saturday said he was “pained” and “ashamed”, and even felt like resigning, after members of Congress and other opposition parties questioned his decision to allow RLD chief Jayant Chaudhary to speak on the Bharat Ratna conferred on his grandfather and former Prime Minister Chaudhary Charan Singh. Dhankhar also accused Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge of insulting Charan Singh and his legacy. As soon as Rajya Sabha proceedings began in the morning, Chaudhary was allowed to speak by the Chair. In his short speech, he praised the BJP government for its decision to honour Charan Singh, and rued that it is being seen through a political prism and is being linked to elections and political alliances. “I admit I was with the Opposition for 10 years. I started sitting here (treasury benches) just a while ago. I have seen glimpses of Charan Singh's ideals in the working of this government in the last 10 years,” he said. “Only a government which is rooted in ground realities, understands the voices from the ground and strengthens them can honour 'Dhartiputra' Charan Singh with Bharat Ratna.” The Opposition MPs raised objections, asking under which rule had Chaudhary been allowed to speak on the Bharat Ratna. “There is no debate on honouring leaders with Bharat Ratna. I salute everyone (those honoured). But if a member wants to raise an issue, you ask under which rule. under which rule he is being allowed to speak. Give us permission too,” Kharge told Dhankhar. He said that while Dhankhar talks about rules and he has the discretion, the discretion should be used judiciously and not when he wants. Kharge also accused the Chairman of not following the rules, leading to an uproar in the House. Leader of the House and Union Minister Piyush Goyal asked Kharge to apologise to the Chair as well as the nation for his remarks. Amid the uproar, Union minister Parshottam Rupala said he was surprised that the Congress was “opposing” conferring of Bharat Ratna to Charan Singh. “The Leader of Opposition is challenging the Chair and on such an occasion,” he said, referring to Kharge. “Congress has been exposed.” Accusing Kharge of insulting Charan Singh, Dhankhar said such an environment in the House is an insult to every farmer in the country and everyone’s head should bow in shame because of this. He also warned Congress MP Jairam Ramesh for his remarks against Chaudhary. “You are a person who can feast on the cremation ground. you do not deserve to be part of the House by this misconduct,” Dhankhar said. Making an emotional speech later in the day, Dhankhar said, “The hurt to the dignity of the House while I was sitting in this Chair was a matter of pain for me today. I believe that every member of this House is proud that this award has been conferred on this great son of the nation. It was obvious that his grandson, on his written request, would be given an opportunity to speak in the House.” “Charan Singh did not belong to a family but the whole country. The conduct that I saw, and you saw too, was unprecedented, offensive and painful. The conduct of some members was so petty that I was ashamed. Many thoughts came to my mind, one was of resignation too,” Dhankhar said, seeking the House’s attention with folded hands. “I can tell you, I have had many tough moments in my life. I have lost my grown-up son. But today’s pain. When Jayant Chaudhary was speaking, what was Jairam Ramesh saying? I heard it. ‘Jaao jahan jaana hai. (Go wherever you want).’ Celebrations are not made over cremation grounds. This behaviour cannot be ignored. I have seen it. I have felt the pain… I do not wish to stretch this issue further,” he said. “I pray to you that use as many weapons you want in a political debate. But when it is a matter of dignity of a person, we should be very sensitive. This thing will not remain limited to this House, it will reach the people. We should meet outside the House and build a consensus on such issues,” Dhankhar said. He picked out the conduct of Kharge. “I respect Kharge ji. He has had such a long political life, full of simplicity. But I suffer in silence that he does not care about the dignity of the Chair. I see all this differently. But there is a limit to this. You can say anything to Jagdeep Dhankhar… but challenging the Chair, shouting, does not befit anyone, specially the Leader of the Opposition. I seek your forgiveness with folded hands for saying these words. that I could not rein in the free fall of this House,” he said. Dhankhar said he read out the Prime Minister's tweets on Bharat Ratna in the House because he felt that as the Chair it was his duty to inform the House. “From this Chair, I have paid respects to all kinds of people. I have paid respects on the birthdays of our MPs, our sportspersons, those who have won Oscar awards… The moment I came to know about Bharat Ratna being given to three people, without wasting any time. I knew some people would object that sitting in this Chair you are reading the Prime Minister’s tweets. But I felt that as the Chairman of the House I should share this information with the House,” he said. “That the entire House would feel that former PM Narsimha Rao, M S Swaminathan and Chaudhary Charan Singh have been conferred the Bharat Ratna. What his family, the farmers, the poor must have felt that Jayant Chaudhary was not allowed to speak? That he was misbehaved with,” Dhankhar said. He hoped that the House would condemn such behaviour in one voice. “Personally, I condemn this so strongly that I do not have words. You also ponder over it. We have come to the depths of this House’s fall. I will not let it fall further. Mind you, there will be a comprehensive impact of this. What was the need today? He was going to speak for a couple of minutes. It would be over. I had to read out his written request. Then I was told why didn’t you tell us before. You don’t read the rules and suddenly start commenting,” he said.
