NEW DELHI: The strained ties between the Opposition and Rajya Sabha chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar came to a head on Tuesday as the INDIA bloc submitted a notice for a motion in the House to remove him from the post, accusing him of partisanship.Congress leaders Jairam Ramesh and Naseer Hussain submitted the notice signed by 60 MPs — including from the Congress, RJD, TMC, CPI, CPI-M, JMM, AAP, DMK, Samajwadi Party — to Rajya Sabha Secretary General P C Mody.The motion said, “Unfortunately, Dhankhar’s brief term has been rife with instances where he has acted in a manner that is explicitly partisan and unfair towards members belonging to the Opposition.”This is the first time that such a notice has been moved in the Rajya Sabha. While the Opposition conceded that the scales are tilted in favour of the ruling NDA, they said it was a “strong message to fight for parliamentary democracy”.Elaborating the reasons to move the motion, the parties pointed out that Dhankhar’s conduct of the House on Monday was particularly one-sided and totally unfair. “He was encouraging and provoking the Treasury Benches to make outrageous remarks.” He has repeatedly acted in a manner that reduces the prestige of the position he holds, they charged.The Opposition enclosed a list of articles and videos covering various instances where the chairman has unjustly been critical of Opposition members or their actions.Later, Jairam Ramesh said that they were pained to move such a notice, but were “forced” to do so after he “crossed all limits” on Monday by allowing several members of the treasury benches to speak against the top Congress leadership in the House.
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