The Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and the BJP on Thursday protested against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in the assembly.
MLAs from the ruling parties demanded an apology from Gandhi for insulting Hindutva leader VD Savarkar and allegedly making anti-India remarks during a visit to the UK.
The house was twice adjourned due to the commotion created by the MLAs.
Legislators held a banner with Gandhi's face, hit it with slippers
The legislators held up a banner with Gandhi’s face on it and the BJP legislator Yogesh Sagar and the chief whip of the Shiv Sena Legislative Party, Bharat Gogawale, hit it with slippers, while others shouted, “Desh ke gaddaro ko, jute maro salo ko (Traitors should be beaten with shoes).”
Last Sunday, the Congress had tweeted, “Sarvarkar samjha kya? Name is Rahul Gandhi,” referring to the Hindutva leader’s mercy petitions to the British.
MVA legislators slammed protests
Balasaheb Thorat, Congress Legislative Party leader, warned the ruling parties that their leaders could also be targeted in the same manner.
“If we agitate against senior leaders of other parties in the same manner, will they accept it?” he asked.
Ajit Pawar, Leader of Opposition, also objected to the actions of ruling parties’ MLAs.
Devendra Fadnavis says manner of protest not right
Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said it was not the right way to protest. “This should be stopped but at the same time, the low-level comments against Veer Savarkar must be stopped first,” he said.
Speaker Rahul Narvekar said he would order an investigation and take action against those who behaved in an “un-parliamentary” manner.
(To receive our E-paper on WhatsApp daily, please click here. To receive it on Telegram, please click here. We permit sharing of the paper's PDF on WhatsApp and other social media platforms.)
