During the Winter Session of the Parliament on December 18, 2024, tensions escalated over comments made by Union Home Minister Amit Shah regarding B.R. Ambedkar, leading to a physical altercation outside the Parliament premises. BJP MP Pratap Sarangi was injured in the melee, alleging that Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of Opposition, was responsible for his injury.
According to Sarangi, “Rahul Gandhi pushed an MP who fell on me after which I fell down…I was standing near the stairs when Rahul Gandhi came and pushed an MP who then fell on me.”
#WATCH | Delhi | BJP MP Pratap Chandra Sarangi says, “Rahul Gandhi pushed an MP who fell on me after which I fell down…I was standing near the stairs when Rahul Gandhi came and pushed an MP who then fell on me…” pic.twitter.com/xhn2XOvYt4
— ANI (@ANI) December 19, 2024
This incident occurred amidst a backdrop of protests by both BJP and Congress MPs, centered around Shah’s remarks which were perceived as an insult to Dr. B.R. Ambedkar.
The Congress party countered these claims by asserting that BJP MPs were the aggressors, alleging that they had pushed Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra at the Makar Dwar of Parliament. This clash was part of a larger demonstration where BJP MPs were chanting slogans like “Babasaheb Ambedkar ji ka apmaan nahi chalega (Insult to Babasaheb Ambedkar ji will not be tolerated),” while displaying banners with messages such as “Ambedkar showed us the path, Congress misled.”
The controversy was further fueled by Union Textiles Minister Giriraj Singh, who criticised the Gandhi family during the protest, stating, “Congress party is the biggest sinner for disrespecting Babasaheb. The whole family took the Bharat Ratna and didn’t give it to Babasaheb… Congress party should fast for 24 hours and take a vow of silence to atone for their sins.” This comment was in reference to the Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian award, which Dr. Ambedkar received posthumously in 1990, during a period when BJP was in power.
JDU MP and Union Minister Rajeev Ranjan Singh defended Amit Shah, accusing the Congress of distorting Shah’s speech for negative publicity. He explained, “Mallikarjun Kharge is just one part of it. The entire Congress party is distorting the Home Minister’s speech to create negative publicity. The Home Minister explained with examples in the Lok Sabha how Congress has disrespected Bhimrao Ambedkar. Pandit Nehru was against reservation… Bhimrao Ambedkar got the Bharat Ratna under BJP’s tenure.”
This statement came on the heels of a press conference by Amit Shah where he accused the Congress of being “anti-Ambedkar and anti-Constitution,” and claimed that his remarks had been misrepresented. Shah emphasised that his comments were taken out of context and twisted to create a false narrative.
