On 26th July, Congress leader and North Kota MLA Shanti Kumar Dhariwal caused a stir during the Rajasthan Legislative Assembly’s question hour on the budget session when she used foul language to address Speaker Sandeep Sharma. The video of the shocking incident went viral on social media in which the latter can be heard asking the senior Congress leader to conclude as he exceeded the allotted time.
Sharma requested, “Sixty-five people are scheduled to speak today. You have already spoken for 30 minutes,” to which he replied, “That doesn’t matter. Let the session continue till late.” Dhariwal then added, “Tum Kota ke ho b***c***. Kota mein rehna hai ke nahi rehna? (You are from Kota. Do you want to keep living in Kota or not),” as other members of the house laughed. Notably, Sharma is an MLA from South Kota.
Arre tum Kota ke ho b#%* Kota me rehna hai ke nai tumhe: Congress MLA Shanti Dhariwal. pic.twitter.com/YuX7Tl173x
— Yash (@Yashfacts28) July 26, 2024
Shanti Dhariwal repeatedly used derogatory language in the legislative assembly. He made objectionable remarks in response to charges of wrongdoing during the Congress government and while talking on the issue of fake leases. When Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA from Nimbahera constituency Srichand Kripalani objected to his offensive utterances, he retorted, “Kripalani ji, You are my friend. Once you became a minister by mistake, you did not get the information. Now, listen to what I am saying and expand your knowledge.”
BJP National Spokesperson Pratyush Kanth took to X (formerly Twitter) to slam the veteran Congressman and wrote, “This is senior Congress leader of Rajasthan, Shanti Dhariwal. He is threatening ‘Whether you want to stay in Kota or not, I will see,’ in the assembly. This is the honour of Congress for the post of Speaker which is a constitutional position. Their leaders in Delhi pretend to protect the Constitution. Will the Congress party take any action against him or will Jairam Ramesh only distance (party) from Dhariwal’s comment?”
ये कांग्रेस राजस्थान के वरिष्ठ नेता शांति धारीवाल है।
— Pratyush Kanth (@PratyushKanth) July 26, 2024
विधानसभा में धमकी दे रहे हैं कि आपको कोटा में रहना है या नहीं देख लेंगे।
स्पीकर पद के लिए कांग्रेस का यह सम्मान जो की एक संवैधानिक पद है। दिल्ली में इनके नेता संविधान की रक्षा का ढोंग करते है।
कांग्रेस पार्टी क्या इन पर कोई… pic.twitter.com/5d0Gni31WH
Shati Dhariwal has already drawn public ire for making a mockery of rape when he was serving as a cabinet minister in Ashok Gehlot’s administration in 2022. “Rajasthan has always been a region of manly persons. There is no doubt in the fact that we are at number one in rape cases. Why are we ahead in rape cases? Is there some fault within us? What can we do? Rajasthan has always been the state of ‘mards’ (men),” he expressed in the legislative assembly as other members received the vile remarks with laughs.
The National Commission of Women (NCW) Chairperson, Rekha Sharma, had declared that the minister would face severe consequences. She stated, “Rajasthan Government has ministers like these that’s why women of the state are suffering gruesome gender crimes and police just don’t do anything. How will women of the state feel safe if it has ministers like these? NCW is taking strong action against Mr Dhariwal.”
