Rajya Sabha uproar: Jaya Bachchan criticizes Chairman's tone, Opposition stages walkout
The incident took place during a session where Jaya Bachchan expressed her disapproval of Jagdeep Dhankhar's manner of addressing her. This marks the second time in a week that Dhankhar introduced her as "Jaya Amitabh Bachchan," a practice she strongly opposed.
In a tense exchange in the Rajya Sabha actor-turned-politician Jaya Bachchan on Friday (August 9) lashed with Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar over what she described as his "unacceptable" tone and disrespectful behavior. The confrontation sparked protests from opposition members, ultimately leading to a walkout led by Congress leader Sonia Gandhi.
The incident took place during a session where Jaya Bachchan expressed her disapproval of Jagdeep Dhankhar's manner of addressing her. This marks the second time in a week that Dhankhar introduced her as "Jaya Amitabh Bachchan," a practice she strongly opposed.
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"I am an artiste. I understand body language and expressions. But your tone is not right. We are your colleagues, but your tone is unacceptable," Jaya Bachchan said in the Upper House.
Chairman Dhankhar responded sharply to her criticism, saying, "Jaya ji, you have earned a great reputation. You know an actor is subject to the director. But every day I do not want to repeat myself. Every day I don't want to do schooling. You are talking about my tone? Enough of it. You may be anybody. You have to understand the decorum. You can be a celebrity but accept decorum."
Following the exchange, Jaya Bachchan, visibly upset, walked out of the Rajya Sabha along with other opposition members. Speaking to reporters afterward, she further criticized the Chairman's behavior, saying, "I objected to the tone used by the Chair. We are not school children. Some of us are senior citizens. I was upset with the tone, and especially when the Leader of Opposition stood up to speak, he switched off the mike. How can you do this? You have to allow the Leader of Opposition to speak... I mean using unparliamentary words every time, which I do not want to say in front of you all."
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Accompanied by Sonia Gandhi and other senior opposition leaders, Jaya Bachchan demanded an apology, stressing her position as a seasoned member of Parliament. "He said you may be a celebrity, I do not care. I am not asking him to care. I am saying I am a member of Parliament. This is my fifth term. I know what I am saying. The way things are being spoken in Parliament these days, nobody has ever spoken before. I want an apology," she asserted.