Congress moves privilege motion against PM Modi for endorsing Anurag Thakur’s Speech

31 Jul 2024 Evaluate

The Congress today moved Privilege Motion against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for ‘encouraging’ BJP MP Anurag Thakur's 'caste' remark against Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi.

Yesterday, while participating in the budget debate in LS, BJP MP Anurag Thakur took jibe at Gandhi's caste. Thakur said without naming anyone, ‘The one whose caste is not known is talking about census.’ Gandhi, however, interrupted MP's speech and said that the Opposition will get the caste census bill passed in the Parliament. Thakur's remarks were expunged from the proceedings of the House and created an uproar from the opposition in the Parliament.

Amid row over BJP MP Anurag Thakur's remark against Rahul Gandhi, PM Modi had shared a video of Thakur’s speech on social media platform and said it is a ‘must hear’. Charanjit Singh Channi said in his notice to the Lok Sabha Speaker, ‘The PM tweeting the remarks that had been expunged from the proceedings of Lok Sabha clearly amounts to a breach of privilege motion against the PM, and I request you to please admit my motion and permit me to move the same, request that privilege proceedings may be initiated against the Prime Minister’.

While, President Mallikarjun Kharge criticised the Prime Minister for sharing Thakur's speech on social media, condemning it as an attempt to inflame sentiments. Kharge said that Thakur said all this purposely to insult Rahul Gandhi and that several of the saffron party's senior leaders have had intercaste marriages. Congress' Jairam Ramesh said that the Prime Minister encouraged a ‘serious breach of Parliamentary privilege’ and called Thakur's speech as ‘highly abusive’ and unconstitutional tirade.’