Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar on Friday took serious note of TMC member Saket Gokhale’s raising his voice in the House and warned him against repeating the “indecorous” behaviour.
The Chairman fell short of naming the TMC member when he kept raising his voice in the house during question hour and asked TMC floor leader Sukhendu Sekhar Ray to see him in his chamber during the day.
Gokhale had asked a supplementary question on overcrowding of trains and steps taken by the government to increase the capacity of trains.
However, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw told him that his supplementary question did not pertain to the question since it was related to the implementation of Kotipalli-Narasapur railway project, and asked him to take an orientation course instead.
“I request your kind self to have an orientation course for the honourable member because when a supplementary question has to be asked, that has to be related to the questions,” the minister said.
Gokhale took offence to these remarks of Vaishnaw and started raising his voice.
“Mr Gokhale, your conduct is ignoble, indecorous, against rules. Your party leaders need to enlighten you,” the chairman said, asking Sukhendu Sekhar Ray to speak.
“I am extremely pained. It is expected of the floor leader to enlighten the young member. If he makes it a habit day in and day out, force my hands. This is not a mileage matter.
“Mr Ray, I strongly appeal to you to take up the matter in your parliamentary party, take up the matter with your leadership. I have the highest regard for all political parties. I want this house to make the government accountable but you can’t be a part of the shouting brigade and that is also getting into an absolutely irrational approach,” the chairman said.
Ray in his response said the question raised by his party member may not be related to the main question, but the minister could have said that since it is not related to the question he is not answering. “Instead, he in his excitement said he should take an orientation course. I am not supporting what my member has said.”
The Chairman said, “I would urge Mr Sukhendu Sekhar Ray to make it convenient to see me in the chamber today. I take a very serious view of the matter.” Dhankhar said such conduct should not be repeated so that the public time for which the public pays up is not misspent.
Meanwhile, Gokhale said the Centre was “imposing” Hindi over English and other regional languages in government business, holding that this was against the federal structure.
Raising the issue during the Zero Hour, Gokhale demanded that English must be used for government business. The TMC member pointed out that, at the start of the current Budget session of the Meghalaya assembly, it was announced that the Governor would deliver his address to the House in Hindi. The BJP leaders in Meghalaya supported this announcement, saying Hindi is our national language, he said. Gokhale said the official language of the state of Meghalaya is English.
Gokhale said the government has recently passed three new criminal laws in Parliament and these laws have been given very complicated Hindi names. He urged that English must be used for government business that extends to all of India, including non-Hindi speaking states.
After his remarks, Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar told Gokhale that he has taken oath under the Constitution. The Chairman said Article 351 of the Constitution provides that it shall be the duty of the Union to promote the spread of the Hindi language.
