Anurag Thakur's apparent reference to Rahul Gandhi's caste triggers row in Lok Sabha
New Delhi, Jul 30: BJP leader Anurag Thakur's apparent reference to Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi's caste during a discussion on the Union Budget in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday triggered an ugly spat between the opposition and treasury benches.
Gandhi accused Thakur of insulting and abusing him during the debate but asserted that he would not seek any apology from the former Union minister.
Questioning the Congress' stand on caste census, the BJP leader made certain remarks on Gandhi's caste that triggered an uproar and had Congress members trooping into the Well of the Lok Sabha.
"Anurag Thakur insulted me and I don't want any apology from him. Abuse or insult me as hard as you can but don't forget we will pass the caste census in this Parliament for sure," the Leader of the Opposition said.
Launching a scathing attack on Gandhi for his "chakravyuh" jibe at the BJP-led government a day earlier, Thakur cited purported portions from a book authored by Shashi Tharoor to hit out at successive Congress governments since 1947 and alleged the former Congress chief misinterpreted his position of LoP as "leader of propaganda".
Thakur also took a jibe at Gandhi, who stood up twice to counter his remarks targeting the previous Congress governments.
The BJP MP from Himachal Pradesh's Hamirpur claimed that Gandhi had already made his remarks but sought permission to speak again after someone passed a chit to him.
"Udhar ki buddhi se rajniti nahi chalti (You can't indulge in politics on borrowed wisdom)," Thakur said.
The former Union minister said one of the synonyms for lotus is Rajiv, the name of Rahul Gandhi's father and former prime minister.
"You linked lotus with violence. Does that mean you also link Rajiv with violence?" the BJP MP asked.
Thakur alleged that the definition of OBCs for Congress is "Only Brother-in-law Commission" and not Other Backward Classes. He also referred to former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi's opposition to reservation for OBCs.
Without taking any names, Thakur said a few people are "accidental Hindus" and their knowledge of the Mahabharat is also accidental.
Jagdambika Pal, who was in the chair, said Thakur's remarks on caste stand expunged.
Samajwadi Party leader Akhilesh Yadav questioned Thakur for his statement and described it as inappropriate. "How can you ask anybody's caste?" he posed.
Pal said nobody in the House is allowed to ask the caste of any person.
During the course of his speech, Thakur alleged that Rahul Gandhi's speeches are written by "Uncle Sam", an apparent reference to party leader Sam Pitroda. The BJP member claimed that Gandhi was using "borrowed wisdom" to make speeches in an attempt to be a "cool dude".
He also said that reality and not "reels" make a "real" politician.
Citing excerpts from Tharoor's book "The Great Indian Novel", the Thakur attacked successive prime ministers from the Congress using abbreviations, including "N-Ji, IG and RG 1".
At this point, Tharoor intervened and said Thakur's repeated references were from a satirical novel written years ago and the BJP leader did not understand the satire.
The Congress MP from Thiruvananthapuram said he has written several other books which are not being quoted by Thakur because it is not convenient for the narrative he wanted to convey.
Referring to Gandhi's remarks on the halwa ceremony ahead of the budget, Thakur referred to a series of scams, including Bofors, CWG, 2G, fodder, urea, coal, jeep and National Herald, and sought to know "who ate the halwa from the scams".
During his speech in the Lok Sabha on Monday, Gandhi displayed a photo of the halwa ceremony that precedes the printing of the budget, saying there was no Dalit, Adivasi or Backward Class person in the photo.
He said 20 officers worked on preparing the country's budget and of them, only one was from the minority community and one from the OBC category.
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Unnao rape case: SC sets aside order suspending Sengar's life term, asks HC to decide plea afresh
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court on Friday set aside a Delhi High Court order suspending the life sentence of former BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh Sengar in the 2017 Unnao rape case and asked it to decide the plea afresh.
A bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi also asked the high court to make endeavours to decide the main plea of Sengar against his conviction and life imprisonment in the case within two months.
It further said that if it was not possible for the high court to decide the main plea expeditiously, then it should pass an order on a plea of Sengar seeking the suspension of the life term in the case before the start of the summer vacation there.
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The bench, which had earlier set aside the HC order granting bail to Sengar after a huge public uproar over the issue, said that it did not express any opinion on the merits of the case and the high court could proceed with it afresh.
The CJI also asked the HC to decide afresh issues like whether an MLA can be treated as a public servant for being prosecuted under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
Earlier, the top court had deferred to the first week of May the hearing on a petition filed by the CBI challenging the suspension of life imprisonment of the former MLA in the rape case.
On December 29 last year, the top court stayed the Delhi High Court order suspending Sengar's life sentence and said he shall not be released from custody.
In its order dated December 23, 2025, the Delhi High Court had said that Sengar had been convicted under Section 5 (C) (aggravated penetrative sexual assault by a public servant) of the POCSO Act but an elected representative does not fit the definition of a "public servant" under Section 21 of the Indian Penal Code.
The high court had suspended the jail term of Sengar, who was serving life imprisonment in the Unnao rape case, till the pendency of his appeal, saying he had already served seven years and five months in prison.
The high court order has sparked criticism from various sections of society and protests were held by the victim, her family and activists.
