'Ridiculous': Rajya Sabha Chairman calls out TMC's Kalyan Banerjee for mimicking him

In a dramatic turn of events on Parliament premises, Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar expressed strong disapproval of Trinamool Congress's suspended MP, Kalyan Banerjee, for mocking him through mimicry during a protest. The incident occurred at Makar Dwar, where Banerjee, along with other suspended MPs, engaged in the act while Congress leader Rahul Gandhi purportedly filmed the episode using his mobile phone.

Upon the House reconvening at noon, Dhankhar addressed the matter, emphasizing the distinction between the roles of the Chairman, Rajya Sabha, and the Speaker. He criticized the act as "ridiculous," "shameful," and "unacceptable," questioning the propriety of a senior leader video-graphing a member from another party, engaging in mimicry of the Chairman and Speaker. Subsequently, he adjourned the House till 2 pm.

In a parallel development, 49 Lok Sabha MPs were suspended for disrupting proceedings, a consequence of their actions the previous day, when 78 opposition members were also suspended. Among the suspended MPs were notable figures such as National Conference's Farooq Abdullah and Congress leaders Shashi Tharoor and Manish Tewari.

The suspended MPs from the INDIA bloc parties, demanding a statement from Home Minister Amit Shah regarding the December 13 security breach in Parliament, staged a protest in front of the Gandhi statue on Parliament premises earlier in the day.