YSR member regrets his remarks against RS Chair

YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) Rajya Sabha leader V. Vijayasai Reddy on Wednesday regretted his remarks against Chairman M. Venkaiah Naidu made the previous day during a short duration discussion on the alleged improper implementation of Andhra Pradesh Reorganization Act.

After his request for more time to speak on the matter was declined by Naidu on Tuesday, Reddy had come near the Chair's podium and angrily questioned his impartiality.

Expressing regret on Wednesday soon after the House met for the day, Reddy said: "I should spontaneously and voluntarily say -- and not at the request or direction of anyone -- that I regret the incident that happened yesterday (Tuesday)."

Adding that he had also met MoS Parliamentary Affairs Vijay Goel on Tuesday itself and explained "the circumstances in which this happened".

"It (the matter being discussed) was a very emotive issue for me. I sincerely thought that adequate time was not given to me. My intention was not to... I am sorry for the incident, that's all," Reddy said after Goel raised the issue of "uncalled for" remarks being made against the Chair.

Goel earlier said: "Coming into the well and casting aspersion on the integrity of the Chair was against the dignity of the House and the Chair. The comments were uncalled for. The member concerned should apologise."

Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad, too, said that such incidents should not happen, no matter how angry a member is.

"Whatever happened yesterday (Tuesday) should not happen again. We may disagree with the Chairman or anybody who is in the Chair at a given time. Every leader wants to speak. But no matter how angry we are, the dignity of the House should be maintained. We may vent out our anger in the Chairman's chamber or during the Business Advisory Committee (BAC) meet where we sometimes fight," Azad said.

"But the tradition of the respect accorded particularly to the Chairman and the Deputy Chairman should be restored. Whatever happened should not have happened," he added.

Asking the members to move on, Chairman Naidu said, "It is over now", and told them to adhere to the allotted time during debates.

"To err is human. We leave it at this stage. I am finding it a little difficult to deal with the situation (members demanding more time than allocated). Senior leaders (of all parties) should also think of ways to deal with the situation. You fix time, rules are there and the Chair has to follow the allocated time. Everyone has to cooperate then," Naidu said.

He cited the example of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh who "effectively" drove home his point in just a few minutes, and asked the members to follow suit.

"It is painful for me too to stop and ask to sit down. This is not a thing which I enjoy," Naidu added.

After Reddy's rant in the House on Tuesday, Naidu explained that each party had been allocated time as per its strength in the House, but considering the gravity of the matter and "keen interest of the members", he yielded more time to each member than fixed and gave chance to more MPs to speak.

He said Vijayasai Reddy was given seven minutes which was three minutes more than the fixed time of four minutes.

Reddy had questioned why he was given so much less time than the rival Telugu Desam Party (TDP).

YSR Congress has two members in the House while the TDP, which had initiated the discussion, has six members.

--IANS

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