Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu in the Lok Sabha on Thursday
Union minister Venkaiah Naidu has clarified to NDTV that he neither apologised nor expressed regret for a series of remarks in Parliament that consolidated nine opposition parties. Mr Naidu said that yesterday, he sought to clear a "misunderstanding" for the contentious remarks and said "no unparliamentary language was used."
On Wednesday, Mr Naidu, known for his one-liners and quick wit, jabbed at different parties in the Lok Sabha. "Self-introspect if you can do it here and if you can't, then go somewhere far and do it," he said; his target was Rahul Gandhi, who is on what his party has described as "a leave of absence" for two weeks to contemplate the Congress' future after a series of thunderous electoral washouts. He then took aim at the regional TRS and the CPI, according to leaders from both parties.
That same night, he called Congress leaders Jyotiraditya Scindia and Mallikarjun Kharge to say no offense was meant but the desired effect did not materialize.
Yesterday, lawmakers from the nine aggrieved parties gathered at the Congress office in Parliament. Congress President Sonia Gandhi took charge. The parties were unanimous about their strategy - let's agitate.
When the Lok Sabha convened, Mr Naidu said he "didn't mean to cause hurt." Unappeased, the parties shouted their dissent.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi then met with Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Mr Naidu and made his stand clear - the minister was told to make nice.
It took another statement from Mr Naidu in Parliament to dissipate the controversy. Those who protested, however, said there is more to come - the truce was organized so that the Railway Budget could be presented to lawmakers, they claimed.