Protests broke out in Rajya Sabha on Tuesday following opposition leaders' allegations that Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) personnel had been stationed within the House.
The allegations were strongly criticized by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader JP Nadda, who criticized opposition MPs for what he called unacceptable behavior.
“I’ve told them many times. I spent over four decades in the opposition. They need lessons on parliamentary conduct from me,” Nadda said during the uproar.
“They’ve only had 10 years in the opposition. They must prepare for 30 or 40 years more,” he continued, accusing the protesting MPs of engaging in “anarchism” rather than legitimate dissent. Following the heated exchange, the House was adjourned until 2 pm.
As Leader of the House, Nadda also reacted to Congress President and Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge's comments, which had claimed the opposition's right to protest in a democratic system.
Nadda replied by stating, "In a democracy, if you carry a stick and it knocks my nose, your democracy stops where my nose begins. That you have to realize. That is not disturbance. it is anarchy!"
The recent face-off comes after a spat broke out earlier last week. It reignited on Tuesday when Deputy Chairman Harivansh was disappointed that Kharge had gone public with a letter to him last Friday. Kharge, in his letter, alleged that the government was employing CISF officers to muzzle the voice of the opposition in the House.
Both Deputy Chairman Harivansh and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju refuted Kharge's claims. Rijiju asserted that only regular parliamentary security personnel were present and blamed Kharge for trying to "mislead the House."
Kharge, however, remained resolute. Referring to the purported deployment of CISF staff as "most objectionable and undemocratic," he was outraged in the letter, which was subsequently made public to the press. "We are surprised and dismayed at the way CISF staff were made to rush into the Well. when members were exercising their democratic right of protest," he wrote.
He went on to say, "This is most objectionable. we condemn it strongly. We hope, in the future, CISF staff will not rush into the Well when members are protesting important issues." Kharge insisted that their protest had been within democratic limits and had quoted past BJP veterans like Arun Jaitley and Sushma Swaraj, who had, at one time, defended robust protest in Parliament.
Deputy Chairman Harivansh summed up by rejecting the CISF claim point-blank, saying, "I want to clarify that only Parliament Security Service can enter the House when needed. No CISF personnel were involved."
