"Had Rahul Gandhi Not Taken A Video...": Mamata Banerjee On Mimicry Row

Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee brushed off the huge political row over mimicry today, dubbing it "casually political".

Asked to comment on the matter in Delhi today, Ms Banerjee said, "We respect everyone. This is not about disrespect. This is just casually political... Had Rahul (Gandhi) not taken a cellphone video, you would not have come to know about it even".  

Ms Banerjee's Trinamool Congress has been in the eye of the storm since her party's MP Kalyan Banerjee was seen outside parliament mimicking Rajya Sabha chairman and Vice -President Jagdeep Dhankhar.

Mr Gandhi faced BJP criticism for filming the moment on his cellphone.

Minutes earlier, around 100 Opposition MPs were suspended in both houses of parliament for their vocal demand that Union Home Minister Amit Shah make a statement on last week's unprecedented security breach.

With the suspensions coming for the second day in a row, the Opposition was fuming.

The BJP has been livid since, and accused the Opposition of having no respect for constitutional positions. Today Mr Dhankhar said: "I don't care about how much you insult Jagdeep Dhankhar. But I can't tolerate (insult of) Vice President of India, farmers community, my community... I will not tolerate that I could not protect the dignity of my post, it is my duty to protect the dignity of this House."

The Congress is fighting tooth and nail.

Senior party leader Randeep Surjewala, in a long post on social media, cited multiple instances where the BJP has "insulted" the constitution, farmers, their daughters who were wrestlers, and their relatives who are in the army.

➡️ विपक्ष मुक्त संसद संविधान का अपमान है।
➡️ विपक्ष मुक्त संसद प्रजातंत्र का गला घोंटता है।
➡️ विपक्ष मुक्त संसद संसदीय मर्यादा का हनन है।

1. जब किसान आंदोलन में राजस्थान-हरियाणा-पंजाब व देश के किसानों को मोदी सरकार के लोग उग्रवादी-नक्सलवादी-अराजक तत्व बता रहे तो क्या वो किसान… pic.twitter.com/T0l0ukJbqE

"The dignity of the post does not come from caste but from the sense of duty. When the government itself is attacking the Constitution, then opposing it is true patriotism. Jai Hind!" his post read.