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Journalism of Courage
Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) members created a ruckus in Lok Sabha over Raj Thackeray’s comments against residents of Bihar. They demanded that the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) leader be arrested under the National Security Act.
Devendra Prasad Yadav (RJD), who raised the issue during Zero Hour, said Raj had fanned parochial sentiments by criticising people from Bihar, who had contributed significantly to the development of Mumbai. “Mumbai owes its shine to their sweat,” he said.
The RJD MP said Raj should be asked to withdraw his remarks, failing which he should be arrested under NSA. The Speaker responded by saying: “India is one country” and expressed the hope that “nobody will promote parochialism.”
Another RJD member, Ram Kripal Yadav, spoke on the same lines as Devendra Yadav. However, the Speaker restrained him from naming the MNS chief on th e ground that he was not a member of the House.
Yadav ignored repeated pleas by the Speaker to take his seat. He was soon joined by Raghunath Jha and other RJD members. Republican Party of India (RPI) member Ramdas Athawale also started speaking, provoking Chatterjee to expunge whatever he was saying.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Priya Ranjan Dasmunsi said he would “faithfully convey the sentiments of members of the House to the Chief Minister of Maharashtra ”.
