Ramesh Bidhuri of the Bharatiya Janata Party made Islamophobic remarks against Bahujan Samaj Party MP Danish Ali in the Lok Sabha during a discussion on the Chandrayaan-3 mission on Thursday, prompting Speaker Om Birla to caution the BJP member.
In a letter written to Speaker Om Birla, Ali wrote, “During the course of his speech, he directed the most foul, abusive invectives against me, which are part of the records of the Lok Sabha. Among the words he directed against me were ‘Bhadwa’ (pimp),’Katwa’ (circumcised one),‘Mullah ugravadi’ (Muslim terrorist) ‘atankvadi’ ( terrorist) etc…“
Opposition members demanded Bidhuri’s suspension from the Lower House of Parliament.
Following the outrage, Birla warned Bidhuri of “strict action” if such behaviour is repeated.
Defence minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday expressed regret in the Lok Sabha for the “objectionable” remarks. Singh said he had not heard the remarks and urged the Chair to delete them from the proceedings if they had hurt the Opposition members.
“What Ramesh Bidhuri said about Danish Ali is highly condemnable. The more it is criticised, the less it is. Defence minister Rajnath Singh has apologised but that is insufficient. I have never heard such language. This language should not be used inside or outside the Parliament. This is an insult to not only Danish Ali but all of us…The beginning of the new Parliament has been done by Bidhuri and his words. This shows the intentions of the BJP. What Bidhuri is saying is the BJP’s intention…I think this is a fit case for suspension and the strictest punishment should be taken against him,” senior Congress MP Jairam Ramesh said.
All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) leader Asaduddin Owaisi said that there was “nothing shocking” about Bidhuri’s remarks and that he was sure that no action would be taken against him.
“There is nothing “shocking” in this video. BJP is a bottomless abyss, so every day a new low is reached. I am sure that no action will be taken against him. There is a possibility that in future he will be made the BJP Delhi State President. Today, Muslims in India are being treated the same way as Jews were treated in Hitler’s Germany. I suggest @narendramodi to dub this video in Arabic soon and send it to your friends,” he wrote in Hindi on X, formerly known as Twitter.
RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav said that PM Modi has given rise to a “depraved social and political culture” which was manifest in the behaviour of BJP parliamentarians.
“The Prime Minister has given birth to such a distorted socio-political culture against the country’s rich parliamentary traditions in which one of its MPs glorifies the terrorist who murdered Father of the Nation Gandhiji. At the behest of the PM, the indecent, unparliamentary and trivial language that a BJP MP is using against an opposition MP inside the Parliament is highly objectionable, condemnable and worrying for democracy and society. This is not their immortality period but their poisonous period,” he wrote in Hindi on X.
Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Mahua Moitra urged him to take action against Bidhuri. She said the Speaker could “feel free” to initiate a privilege motion against her for “calling you out.”
“But I am asking you here and now — what action are you taking against Ramesh Bidhuri?” she wrote on X.
Moitra alleged that “abusing Muslims and OBCs was an integral part of the BJP’s culture”.
“…They (BJP) are doing hooliganism. The language used by Ramesh Bidhuri inside the House is the language of a goon, mafia. He abused and used the terrorist word for a respected MP… The insult of Danish Ali is an insult to all opposition MPs. I raised the Manipur issue and I was suspended, why no action is being taken against him…Action should be taken against him,” senior AAP leader Sanjay Singh said.
“If he (Bidhuri) has only said ‘terrorist’, we are habitual to hearing it…Those words were used against the whole Muslim community. I can’t understand how can Muslims associated with the BJP tolerate this. This shows what they think about Muslims…They should be ashamed,” National Conference leader Omar Abdullah said.
