Social media is flooded with the messages deprecating Chairman of the Rajya Sabha Jagdeep Dhankar for his behaviour on Friday in the house and more for his obstinate observation for Samajwadi Party member Jaya Bachchan. While a message reads “he symbolises arrogance & impatience”, the other says “Dhankar is a misogynistic piece “. Yet another mentioned ”he is as shameless as any other sanghi”. Even a BJP sympathiser wrote “The Chair is to carry the team & not threaten. That is not a forte of any BJP leader!” There are numerous such messages.
One contributor was more candid in his observation: “We’ve been seeing this despicable behaviour since his was Governor of West Bengal. No change despite his elevation simply because he thinks it is a winning formula. Where he goes from here, I don’t know though I reckon that his legacy shall be described as distasteful. His arrogant admonitions in the session “I know how to deal these” speak volumes of his RSS DNA”. These comments obviously convey the hurt feelings of crores of Indians.
The decision of the opposition members in Rajya Sabha to consider the move for an impeachment motion against him is not uncalled for. The Constitution has not given him power and authority to insult a member of the house. The chairman should be polite and his actions should reflect highest order of decency. But his behaviour made it crystal clear that the word decency is alien to him. Some time back the Supreme Court had observed people holding public office should exercise self-restriction and not blabber things which are disparaging or insulting to others.
Dhankar has a legal background, but unfortunately he often forgets the basic tenets of not to insult others. This was not the first time that Dhankar was harsh to leader of opposition, the national president of Congress, Mallikarjun Kharge. He has always used his power to make him shut his mouth. During the question hour on Friday, Dhankhar had a heated exchange with opposition members after he did not agree to their demand to discuss personal jibes on Kharge by BJP MP Ghanshyam Tiwari in the House last week. Besides saying that Kharge’s “entire family is in politics” Tiwari had also referred to Kharge’s father in his speech. Kharge had demanded that Tiwari’s remarks be expunged.
Incidentally Dhankar not only did not react, he made some observation against Kharge: “I shall not be party to this House being converted into an epicentre of disturbance, Mr Kharge. You are determined to have your way at the cost of constitution. You are doing it. It is lack of disrespect to democracy.” It is beyond comprehension what made Dhankar to pass such a comment, when in true sense, Kharge had not spoken any depraved word.
Dhankar often forgets that he is not only the chairman of Rajya Sabha but also the Vice-President of world’s biggest democracy, India. He should have behaved in a more pragmatic and transparent manner. He ought to remember that people associated with public figures cannot do anything that would shame that public figure. There is no denying that through his action, in his zeal to keep in best humour his icon Narendra Modi, he has lowered the prestige of the chair as well as the country. His saying that Kharge, an eight time Member of Parliament was creating disturbance and insulting the wisdom of parliament, that too inside the house, is simply an irresponsible accusation.
In the case of Jaya Bachchan it was a premeditated and conscious attempt of Dhankar to insult her. Else there was no reason for him to say “You may be anybody, you may be a celebrity, you have to understand the decorum, no, nothing doing. I will not bear it. Never carry an impression that only you build reputations. We come here with reputations, we live up to reputations, nothing doing”.
On her part Jaya had earlier objected to the manner in which Dhankar had treated Kharge. She had simply said “I Jaya Amitabh Bachchan want to say, I am an artist. I understand body language and expressions. Sir, forgive me but your tone is not acceptable. We are colleagues, sir. You may be sitting in the Chair, and I remember when I went to school.”
But Dhankhar interjected amid loud protests from treasury benches saying “Has a senior member of the parliament the license to run down the reputation of the chair? To question the tone and tenor? Yes I have to be in reaction mode to take care of the situation. To make it a habit..My tone, my language, my temper? I don’t go by script of others. I have my own script. I am not operated by anyone else. Nothing will happen Khargeji. Think from within”.
In a threatening tone he said; “I know how to deal with it. Jaya ji you have earned a great reputation. You know an actor is subject to the director. You have not seen what I have seen from here every day. I don’t want to repeat. I don’t want schooling. I am a person who has gone out of the way and you say my tone.” This was certainly of the nature of casting aspersion of Jaya. It is beyond comprehension how could chairman do so?
Though Dhankar has been in public life for quite a long time , but his recent behaviour during the proce3dings in Rajya Sabha leaves little doubt that he has miserably failed to understand the ramifications of his unjust statements that he is habituated of making either as the governor of West Bengal or as the chairman of the Rajya Sabha. People of Bengal are yet to forget his uncharitable remarks against not only Mamata Banerjee but even against the state officials.
BJP and Modi will be remembered for lowering the prestige of the chair and tenets of the parliamentary democracy. What is happening in Parliament now has never happened in the history of independent India. Priyanka Gandhi was right in recalling how Ram Manohar Lohia’s sharp remarks and Jawaharlal Nehru’s patience in listening to those, are still cited as examples.
Samajwadi Party MP Jaya Bachchan on Friday demanded an apology from Vice President for his remarks. The opposition members have a valid question; “how could he accuse the Opposition of attempting to destabilise the nation and push the country towards anarchy? is it not a tactics to gag the opposition and make it fall?” The INDIA bloc leaders are rightly angry. If the finally decide to move a motion to impeach the chairman of Rajya Sabha, that will be an unprecedented event, but the way the chairman is conducting the affairs in Rajya Sabha, that has also no precedence. (IPA Service)
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