RS Chairman cannot be cheerleader of ruling dispensation: Congress

New Delhi, March 9 (IANS) After Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Thursday criticised Rahul Gandhi for the statements made by him during his recent trip to London, the Congress countered the former by saying that the Rajya Sabha Chairman is like an umpire who cannot be the cheerleader of the ruling dispensation, adding that Congress has been the most consistent voice in the opposition and it will continue to be so.

Without taking name, Dhankhar on Thursday targeted Rahul Gandhi for making 'anti-India' remarks on foreign soil, terming them as ironic and painful.

Speaking at a book launch function, Dhankhar said, "How ironic, how painful! While the world is applauding our historic accomplishments as a functional vibrant democracy, some among us, including parliamentarians, are engaged in the thoughtless, unfair denigration of our well-nurtured democratic values. How can we justify such wanton orchestration of a factually untenable narrative?"

Dhankhar also said that he would be on the wrong side of the Constitution if he maintains silence on this misadventure-orchestration by a Member of Parliament outside the country, which is ill-premised, unwholesome and motivated.

Countering the Vice President, senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said in a statement, "The RS Chairman is an umpire, a referee, a friend, philosopher and guide to all. He cannot be a cheerleader for any ruling dispensation. History measures leaders not on the zealousness with which they defend their party, but the dignity with which they performed their roles in the service of the people."

"There are certain offices which require us to shed our prejudices, our party allegiances and compel us to rid ourselves of whatever propaganda we may have imbibed along the way. The office of the Vice President of India, an office on which the Constitution bestows the additional responsibility of being the Chair of the Rajya Sabha, is foremost among these," Ramesh said.

The statement also said that Dhankhar's remarks on Rahul Gandhi were surprising to say the least.

"Rahul Gandhi has not said anything abroad that he has not said several times here. And unlike certain other individuals, his stand does not vary depending on where he sits," Ramesh said.

The Congress leader also said that Rahul Gandhi's remarks were factual and representative of the reality on the ground.

"Over the last two weeks, more than 12 MPs from the Opposition parties have been served with breach of privilege notices for protesting the suppression of their voices in the Parliament on an issue that is inconvenient to the ruling regime," Ramesh said.

"Over the last eight years, channels and newspapers have been blacked out, raided, and intimidated to the point that the only voice that is carried is that of the government. Institutions that maintained a studied distance from the governments of the past are now subordinated to the point that they choke on any order or finding adversarial to the ruling regime. Those who dissent are penalised.

"There may be no declaration of Emergency, but make no mistake, the actions of this regime are not those of a secure government that respects the Constitution. The Vice President's remarks on this occasion, as well on certain previous ones, only serve to underscore this point," Ramesh said in the statement.

Addressing MBA students at the Cambridge Judge Business School on the topic of 'Learning to Listen in the 21st Century', Rahul Gandhi had recently said that opposition parties are under 'constant pressure' as numerous cases have been slapped on them by the BJP government.

"Indian democracy is under attack. The institutional framework which is required for a democracy -- Parliament, free press, the judiciary, just the idea of mobilisation -- these are all getting constrained. We are facing an attack on the basic structure of democracy," Rahul Gandhi had said.