Protests over Vinesh Phogat disqualification in Rajya Sabha, anguished Jagdeep Dhankhar leaves House for a while   

Aditi Tandon

New Delhi, August 8

Growing bitterness between the government and the opposition over the disqualification of wrestler Vinesh Phogat from the Olympic race resonated big in Rajya Sabha on Thursday morning with Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar leaving his chair in protest against opposition misconduct in the house.

The development happened during zero hour when leader of opposition Mallikarjun Kharge rose to question as to who is behind Phogat’s disqualification, and TMC’s Derek O Brien also got up and demanded permission to raise the matter.

“Your tone is the ugliest. You are shouting at the chair. Next time I will show you the door,” Dhankhar said to Derek denying the opposition their request to raise the Phogat issue which the government said should not be politicised.

Dhankhar then left his seat in an unprecedented move citing his anguish over frequent “opposition misconduct”.

“For some time now I am finding I am being challenged physically, verbally, through letters, through newspapers. This is a challenge not to me but to the chair of the Rajya Sabha presiding officer. These people (the opposition) think the person occupying this chair is not fit for it. I don’t find myself capable of sitting here for the time being. I have only one option left. I am leaving the chair,” Dhankhar said.

He said he had left no stone unturned in taking the opposition along but continued to face a “disruptive house”.

“One member challenged me physically,” he said.

On one occasion, Dhankhar ticked off Congress chief whip Jairam Ramesh.

“Don’t laugh, Mr Ramesh, I know your habit,” he said.

Deputy chairman of Rajya Sabha Harivansh then conducted the zero hour proceedings.

Interestingly, BJP president JP Nadda is the leader of the house in Rajya Sabha and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge is the leader of Opposition, something Dhankhar mentioned today along with the fact that the topmost Congress leader (Sonia Gandhi) was also a member of the house.

Meanwhile, Dhankhar has called all floor leaders for a meeting.