Who Will Apologise First: Fresh Deadlock In Rajasthan Assembly Over 'Dadi' remark

A question of who will apologise first has led to a continuing deadlock in the Rajasthan assembly following BJP minister Avinash Gehlot's "Dadi" remarks on former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. After Friday's ruckus, both government and the Opposition had agreed to apologise to each other, but now the question of who will go first stalled work in the house on Monday.

Over the weekend, both sides had agreed to reinstate six suspended MLAs, but the dispute arose today over who should apologise first.

The MLAs were suspended on Friday following a chaotic protest over BJP minister Avinash Gehlot's reference to former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi as "aapki dadi" (your grandmother). 

That night, all six suspended MLAs -- Rajasthan Congress President Govind Singh Dotasra, Deputy Leader of Opposition Ramkesh Meena, Amin Kagzi, Zakir Hussain Gesawat, Hakeem Ali Khan and Sanjay Kumar Jatav -- were seen sleeping inside the House.

Once the apologies were decided on, Mr Dotasra - who had climbed onto the Speaker's dais during Friday's ruckus - apparently did a perfunctory job. Without explicitly apologising, he merely called the incident "regrettable".

The Speaker insisted that he say "I express regret". But Mr Dotasra flatly refused, demanding that Minister Avinash Gehlot first apologise for his controversial remarks.

"The minister's comments on Indira Gandhi sparked the controversy. If the ruling party expects us to express regret, the minister must first apologise for his statement," Mr Dotasra argued.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Jogaram Patel objected, citing the agreement that the Opposition will apologise first and accused Mr Dotasra of reneging on the deal.

The Speaker made his exasperation clear.

"I have given multiple opportunities for reconciliation, but the opposition remains adamant. Enough is enough-do whatever you want," said Speaker Vasudev Devnani.

He urged both parties to take responsibility for resolving the dispute and allow the Assembly to function smoothly. But with neither side willing to budge, the deadlock remained unresolved.

On Friday, the Assembly witnessed uproar over a remark by the minister. 

While answering a question regarding hostels for working women, Mr Gehlot, the Social Justice and Empowerment Minister, pointed to the Opposition and said, "In the 2023-24 budget of also, like always, you named the scheme (on working women's hostels) after your 'dadi' (grandmother) Indira Gandhi."

As Leader of Opposition Tika Ram Jully strongly objected and demanded that the word be expunged, slogan-shouting Congress MLAs moved towards the well of the House.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Jogaram Patel said there was nothing unparliamentary about the word 'dadi'. But the Congress was not mollified and the House was adjourned thrice.