New Delhi--HRD Minister Smriti Irani found herself at the centre of ruckus in Lok Sabha Monday with several Opposition members accusing her of being “arrogant and aggressive” in the House.
Smriti left a number of MPs, especially those from the Trinamool Congress, upset as she made her stand clear on contentious decisions like scrapping Delhi University’s four-year UG programme, controversies regarding IITs and alleged saffronisation of education during a discussion on Demands for Grants for HRD ministry.
The MPs demanded that she express “regret” for asking TMC MP Sugata Bose to “have the patience to sit down and listen”. Irani, however, refused to oblige.
“Let me assure the House that insofar as education goes, the central government irrespective of my aggression or combative position today will work in tune with the states because ultimately, we are responsible to the children,” she said and a sentence in Bengali directed at the TMC to say they should have the patience to “sit and tolerate”.
Taking exception to Irani asking him to “sit down and listen” to her countering points he raised in the debate Friday, Bose said: “Since my primary school days, I have not been asked by anyone, when I have stood up respectfully, to sit down in the way that the HRD Minister of this country did today” TMC’s Kalyan Banerjee told the chair: “Please look at the minister’s arrogance…”
Indian Express
