This action is inappropriate: Pilot hits out at BJP over suspension of MPs

After the suspension of 143 MPs from Parliament, Congress leader Sachin Pilot hit out at the BJP and asked if the opposition did not have the right to put forward its view.

"The issue is that they are suspending the MPs. They are making different headlines...Does the Opposition not have the right to put forward its view? This action is inappropriate," Sachin Pilot told reporters.

A total of 143 MPs--97 from Lok Sabha and 46 from Rajya Sabha--have been suspended so far for creating a ruckus and disrupting proceedings in both Houses, demanding a statement from Union Minister Amit Shah about the Parliament security breach incident.

Amid the controversy over the mimicry incident of Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar, Congress General Secretary in-charge Communications, Jairam Ramesh on Wednesday asked for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's response over insulting his political opponents in the last 20 years and said that BJP leaders are fuelling the mimicry row to divert attention from real issues.

The remarks came after Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Wednesday revealed the details of his telephonic conversation with Prime Minister Modi, where the latter mentioned that he had been at the receiving end of such insults for twenty years and counting.

In this regard, Jairam Ramesh shared a video on X (former Twitter) where PM Modi is targetting senior Congress leaders including Sonia Gandhi and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

"The Prime Minister has said that he has been suffering insults for the last twenty years. But what will he say about the way he has insulted his political opponents and used abusive and indecent language against them in the last 20 years? This is their cliched way of diverting attention from the real issue," Jairam Ramesh posted on X, roughly translated from Hindi.

The controversy erupted after suspended Trinamool Congress MP Kalyan Banerjee, during the protest with other suspended MPs at Parliament's Makar Dwar, was seen mimicking Vice Presiden Jagdeep Dhankhar, while Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was seen filming the Trinamool MP using his phone.

Hitting out at the media for not discussing the suspension of members extensively, Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday said that the media is entirely focused on showing the mimicry incident and not highlighting the pain and agony of the suspended MPs, adding that what can be done if the "media is running on one line".

Addressing reporters in New Delhi, Rahul Gandhi said, "MPs were sitting there, I shot their video. My video is on my phone. The media is showing it. Nobody has said anything.150 of our MPs have been thrown out (of the House) but there is no discussion on that in the media. There is no discussion on Adani, no discussion on Rafale, no discussion on unemployment.