Sumitra Mahajan said some decorum needs to be maintained in the Parliament
Congress chief Rahul Gandhi's hug and wink in house has received deep disapproval from BJP leaders. It also appears to have riled Speaker Sumitra Mahajan, who was seen grinning broadly when the Congress chief walked up to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and amazed everyone by hugging him. Television cameras caught him winking at a party leader sometime later.
The BJP poured scorn on what they called a theatrical gesture from the Congress chief. Harsimrat Kaur Badal, the Akali leader from Punjab who had been outraged about Rahul Gandhi's comments on drug use in Punjab, was disdainful. Other leaders followed with comments and tweets.
The Speaker weighed in some time later, during the address of Union minister Rajnath Singh.
"I did not say anything then. I couldn't understand what happened, was wondering what was going on," the Speaker said.
As Mr Singh interjected, "some people had started a Chipko movement" -- Ms Mahajan continued, "You Congress members might have liked it... but there is some decorum that needs to be maintained".
Rahul Gandhi hugged PM Modi after his speech in Lok Sabha
PM Modi, she said, was occupying the Prime Minister's chair in the House. "I won't object to anybody being hugged. I'm a mother too. But he is the Prime Minister... I am just saying the way it was done - and later to come back and wink and start speaking again. This behavior is not okay," Ms Mahajan added.
When some of the Congress members protested, Ms Mahajan said she wasn't pointing fingers because Rahul Gandhi is an opposition leader. "Rahul-ji is like my son. But it is also a mother's job to correct children," she added.
The last word belonged to Rajnath Singh, who quipped that as soon as the session is over, "Kharge (Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge) and I will also hug".