'Don't take credit for Oscar wins': Congress cautions BJP

• Rajya Sabha MPs congratulated the makers of RRR and The Elephant Whisperers for winning two Oscars
• In Rajya Sabha, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge said the BJP should not claim credit for RRR and The Elephant Whisperers winning two Oscars
• Mallikarjun said it is a matter of great pride that two cinemas from southern India won the award

Cross-party Rajya Sabha MPs on Tuesday congratulated the makers of RRR and The Elephant Whisperers for winning two Oscars. Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge said it was a matter of great pride that two cinemas from South India won the award, but went on to say that the BJP should not claim the Oscars.

"My demand is that the ruling party should not take credit for the fact that we directed, wrote the poem or that this film was directed by Modi ji. They should not say it is just my demand. It is the country's contribution," Kharge said.

Congress president Jairam Ramesh added that the Speaker should not disturb Kharge's remarks. "This is an occasion for collective celebration and not for the narrow partisan point-scoring that the leader of the house is doing," said Jairam Ramesh.

When the House met, Rajya Sabha Speaker Jagdeep Dhankhar mentioned Naatu Naatu for winning the Academy Award for Best Original Song and The Elephant Whisperers for winning the Academy Award for Best Documentary Short Film.

"The 95th Academy Awards was a moment of glory for us," said Dhankhar. "Wins for The Elephant Whisperers and RRR mark a new recognition of the entire spectrum of cinema that India produces."

Speaker of the House and Union Minister Piyush Goyal said, "The Elephant Whisperers was created by two eminent women. It's about gender. It's about respect for our women in India. It's a big mark of appreciation for Indian women."

It is also about sustainability which has become the core of our philosophy, he said, adding that RRR scriptwriter V Vijayendra Prasad is a Rajya Sabha MP.