- 12 hours ago
On this Special Report, the focus is on the political storm triggered by Congress MP Renuka Chowdhury bringing a stray dog to Parliament. Chowdhury defended her action, remarking that 'those sitting inside Parliament bite, not dogs,' and later mimicked a barking sound at reporters when asked about a potential privilege motion. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has condemned her conduct, with leaders demanding strict action for allegedly insulting parliamentary dignity. The programme also features a debate with Congress spokesperson Salman Soz, who highlights the depreciating Indian rupee and economic concerns, and BJP’s Tuhin Sinha, who accuses the Congress of diversionary tactics. Senior Journalist Neerja Chowdhury weighs in on the declining civility in public discourse.
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NewsTranscript
00:00Hello everyone, you're watching NewsTrack with me, Maria Shaquille.
00:03What began as a dog cameo on Monday has turned into a full-blown buck-fest today.
00:10Congress MP Rinuka Choudhury's furry friend and a remark that it doesn't bite,
00:15but the MPs inside Parliament do, has sparked a political storm.
00:19She, however, continues to defend her act and even responded with a bow-bow
00:23when asked about a possible privilege motion against her
00:26for bringing the dog into Parliament complex.
00:30Her reaction prompted sharp responses from the BJP.
00:34From Monday's walk-in to today's commotion,
00:36one thing is clear, moments like these remind us that Parliament works best
00:40when everyone keeps the debate constructive and respectful and not otherwise.
00:45Take a look at this report and then I'll tell you
00:48what the experts and also the politicians are thinking tonight.
00:56Parliamentary discourse seems to have gone to the dogs, quite literally.
01:03Politics went into overdrive when Congress MP Rinuka Choudhury
01:07strolled into Parliament with a canine on Monday.
01:11The dog barely had time to sniff the security barricades before being sent back.
01:16But the real bite came after the bark.
01:19When Rinuka declared that her dog does not bite,
01:22but the ones sitting inside Parliament do.
01:25And if that jab wasn't enough to set tails wagging,
01:47Renuka Choudhury doubled down today by literally barking at reporters.
01:50A bhao-bhao that echoed louder than half the speeches in the house.
01:55She insists that she has done nothing wrong
02:05and that she won't be scared of the warnings or even a privilege motion.
02:10Renuka Choudhury is also being backed by Rahul Gandhi,
02:28who says the BJP is barking up the wrong tree.
02:32Other opposition MPs are also backing her.
02:51I never expected such comments from her.
03:00But if she has said that, I definitely condemn it.
03:04But the BJP is growling back.
03:07The party says that her comments have insulted MPs
03:10and is demanding strict action against her.
03:12It's a good cause of the regime.
03:23This is a tough question from his hands.
03:24This is a tough question from the people of China.
03:25It's an official question from the government.
03:27and so what began with a harmless canine cameo has snowballed into a full-fledged dog fight
03:49with leaders snapping and snarling at each other the dog made a momentary appearance
03:55but the bickering it unleashed is likely to continue for a while bureau report india today
04:01joining me on the show tonight uh salman so's national spokesperson of the congress party we
04:10have two in sinar representing the bjp neerja chowdhury senior journalist will be joining me
04:15shortly salman so's does the congress view that renuka chowdhury is dog entry and the subsequent
04:21response and biting mp's comment as upholding or eroding the dignity of parliament
04:27well uh you know before i get into what the congress party has to say i thought your viewers
04:35might be interested to know uh that a bjp mp uh poona mahajan in 2013 uh right here uh right here
04:47i hope your viewers can see is very nicely i might say very nicely i'm a dog lover myself i'm a dog
04:56dad uh she was uh uh taking care of a stray animal inside parliament a stray dog and it was good to
05:05see but by the way when i was doing some research for the show uh it was good to see uh reina reina
05:11witnessed an accident and in the close to the accident site she saw uh a stray dog walking she
05:22was concerned for that dog and put him in his car and that gesture of humanity has become a serious
05:29problem for the bjp for the bjp it is not a serious problem that uh the indian rupee has touched 90
05:36rupees to the dollar for the bjp it is not a serious problem that tens of billions of dollars
05:44have left the country uh because foreign investors are pulling their money for the bjp it is not a
05:51problem that because of the depreciation of the indian rupee fuel fertilizer electronics these
05:59prices are going to be uh higher for the indian consumer son salman and and for them the concerns
06:06with regards to rupee is also a valid one neerja chowdhury who has tracked india's parliamentary
06:12democracy for years uh will be joining me as well any moment now but toheen coming to what is being
06:20said by the congress party why does the bjp believe that renika chowdhury's actions and remarks
06:28warrant a privilege motion to protect parliamentary protocol and respect it could very well be seen
06:34as you are indulging in diversionary tactic running away from important debates as salman is highlighting
06:40willful compulsive protests inside the parliament to this new canine obsession the congress party you
06:51know seems to be having a field day but point is the bjp uh the congress party is nowhere in any
06:58mood to discuss serious issues there are 13 bills pending debate debate all of these 13 bills are
07:04very crucial from the point of view of the economic agenda of the country does salman source not realize
07:10the importance of the atomic energy bill you know the which which would bring uh the private sector
07:16into our nuclear energy production does he not realize the importance of janvish waspil when i saw when
07:23i first saw renuka renuka ji barking i actually thought it was an ai video you know but it took
07:29i watched it two or three times to convince myself that it was not an ai video i think the congress
07:35party you know is so despondent today after 95 defeats and with no sign of revival that you know they
07:42must seriously take care of their mental health because if they don't this is by no means this is not
07:47the way to protest if you have serious issues bring it up we are open to discussion you know next monday
07:52for one whole day there is a discussion on one day one day matram and the following day electoral
07:57reforms are being decided we are open to discussing you know sir all the issues that they bring forth but
08:02over the last three or four years it actually started in 2019 after the second defeat of congress
08:08party they realized that they would not be able to bounce back and hence you know the sense of
08:12entitlement that they have the perverse sense of entitlement has led them to disrupt parliament
08:17time and again between 2014 to 19 the you know the productivity of nooksava stood at a good 83 84
08:24percent it brought came down to 50 percent between 2019 to 20 2024 after congress realized it won't get
08:32down get back to power and now it's somewhere around 40 percent i think the congress party has a lot to
08:37respect over here talking about uh this action you know salman how does the congress then justify
08:46renuka chowdhury's defiance uh you know because it is about security and decorum and with these concerns
08:53seem to be valid look when the parliament session was announced uh tuheen is right 13 bills 15 days 13 bills
09:0410 of the bills have not gone to the standing committee of parliament at the respective standing
09:09committee that shows you the seriousness of uh the bjp when it comes to parliamentary procedures
09:16as far as renuka ji is concerned she is purely defending the the attacks from the bjp on her if the bjp is
09:26really serious about parliamentary work let's let's discuss things in parliament let's debate those things
09:31why are we discussing uh with the stray dogs if you have such a problem with stray dogs inside
09:37parliament you should think about uh people suffering because of stray dogs outside parliament
09:42have why doesn't the bjp do more about serious stray dog issues outside parliament they're very concerned
09:51when it comes to them nobody should come into parliament even though i've just shown you a photograph
09:57of a bjp mp with a stray dog inside parliament but bjp had no problem at that time they have a problem at this time why
10:07because they want to make an issue out of a non-issue because there are serious issues that they
10:14would rather not talk about they would rather not tell you maria that because the indian rupee has depreciated
10:22so much despite rbi action rbi has rbi has been spending billions of dollars to prop up the rupee
10:29and despite that the rupee has been falling the indian rupee has become the worst uh performing
10:35currency in in asia in 2025 but they don't want you to talk about that because they know
10:42that is going into the direction of inflation in those commodities that have a direct impact on your
10:49pockets they don't want to talk about those things okay they'll talk about okay will you respond that
10:54will you respond to that please quickly tumeen sina you know an intelligent person like salman
11:02would realize that we don't have a problem with the dog the entire issue emanates when you know she
11:07dramatizes the whole situation it's journalists asking her questions have we asked her questions
11:11when journalists go to her to ask questions and she makes all kinds of funny bizarre canine sounds
11:17obviously you know it's an insult to the parliament and then look at the language look at the way she's
11:22saying that those sitting inside bite with obviously she's referring to even those congress members who
11:28tend to not participate in disruptive activities rahul gandhi repeated that those inside are more
11:33dangerous or whatever so please have respect for your fellow you know parliamentarians we have seen
11:38what rahul gandhi was during was doing during the raphal debate he was throwing paper planes he was
11:43winking this is the level of seriousness you bring under rahul gandhi and then you complain that you
11:48know we don't involve you in discussions we are see maria you would realize this is the first time
11:53parliament has operated till 1 1 30 in the night discussing article 370 and then during the walk
12:00discussion the discussion went on till 2 a.m and then the money pool bill was discussed till 4 a.m
12:05nirja chowdhury you have tracked parliament and parliamentary proceedings for uh decades now how do you
12:13look at renuka chowdhury's comments uh you know how does it really impact public perception of
12:19parliamentary decorum i would ask look uh uh all the comments that have been made uh avoidable
12:27completely and i was thinking maria what really ails up parliament today and i would put the lack of
12:34civility in our public discourse and in parliament on top of the list you know one opened the newspaper
12:40this morning and read about uh both sides opposition and the ruling side having come to an understanding
12:48on uh discussing sir and one day matram things had been worked out eight and nine the discussion would
12:54be here and you felt my goodness at the end of the day despite the differences despite the viciousness
13:00they they do manage to make things work and within hours something else had happened so i would say
13:07you know it's no point saying okay renuka chowdhury said this ragini that did that completely completely
13:13avoidable things and others have retaliated this evening on about sonia gandhi and so on uh you know
13:20this is not the way we would like a parliament to function in our parliamentary democracy about which we are
13:26proud for all its fault lines and i wish you know i don't know what the answer is we keep lamenting we
13:32keep bemoaning this in session after session what is the answer maria you know we can everybody can say
13:40but this happened a year ago uh how many years ago you know i am proud that the chaiwala in our country
13:47makes it to the pinnacle of power i'm proud that uh gwala's family lalu yadav ruled in bihar for 15
13:55years that our democracy can throw people who rise from the ground we are proud of it but it is the
14:00manner in which it is being projected uh and equally you know things now being said about sonia gandhi on
14:07national television completely as i said i wish we go beyond it somehow can can the prime minister can
14:16the leader of the opposition please sit down you know talk it out do whatever has to be done there
14:23is enormous bitterness between the two sides which is not limited to uh opposing ideology or opposing
14:31points you know one may also say that yes there are disagreements but the fact that today uh both
14:38the sides the treasury benches and the opposition decided that there will be points of convergences that
14:43there will be discussion on electoral reforms that there will be discussion on issues that the
14:48opposition things must take center stage would you then say that you know points of confrontation are
14:54perhaps getting lesser by the day at one level yes as i said maria when we started the day today for
15:02instance yes that they had found a way if it was not to be specifically sir it would come under the
15:08theme of electoral reforms but the issue that's agitating the opposition would be discussed and
15:14it must be discussed in parliament yes you you thought there was greater maturity uh you know manifesting
15:22itself but you know i wonder is it because both sides at the end of the day do not want a discussion
15:28in parliament on certain issues do they resort to this kind of uh stalling deliberately and you just wonder
15:35but certainly we deserve we the people of india you and i and all those sitting out there we deserve
15:41better from our government and our opposition and our we want our parliament to function effectively
15:48how you make it work please work out okay how will you make it work the question is that now to
15:55this controversy may well be a distraction from issues like pollution
15:59uh but at the same time it is also showcasing uh salman saw's declining decorum in what is visibly a
16:08very very polarized politics our stand has been very clear we are open and we will discuss each and
16:16everything but you know the it is the prerogative of the government to set the agenda when they wanted
16:21to discuss money we were open to it they wanted to discuss it under a specific rule whereby all other
16:27business of the house would have come to a standstill now when we discussed it for two two full days
16:33home minister spoke for a good two and a half hours they obviously at the end of the day at the end of
16:37it they don't have anything to say the same happened during operation sindoor they insisted on a particular
16:42day when we had the discussion by the end of it rahul gandhi's anti-india you know propaganda got
16:47exposed my point is we are ready for discussion on everything there is a day for electoral reforms which
16:53is next tuesday one day you know obviously if you are discussing our cultural legacy wherein uh one
16:59day matram would be debated which i'm sure uh the congress party would not be happy with i'm assuring
17:05you we are ready to discuss each and everything but these bills these 13 bills are equally important
17:11the repeated disruptive attitude of the congress party coupled with its all kind of canine canine
17:18antics or whatever they are now indulging it is not healthy for the democracy okay uh respond to
17:25that salman source you know that that was completely avoidable perhaps it could have been handled
17:31differently well first of all uh when a bjp spokesperson says that uh the leader of the indian opposition
17:38is anti-national on national television it just tells you what kind of propaganda it just tells you
17:44what kind of mentality the indian oh well it just tells you what kind of mentality the bjp and the rss
17:52have inculcated in in their members i think that that just shows you the other thing is that you know
17:58i think uh uh toheen sina talked about uh you know a lot of different things basically insulting uh
18:07parliamentarians etc etc i think the bjp should not insult the intelligence of the indian people
18:14if the bjp was serious about discussing those issues including by the way the
18:22poor quality air that is choking our the lungs of our children in the city where the
18:28prime minister lives they would kind of say if uh mrs renuka chodri brought in a stray dog through
18:36because of the goodness of her heart maybe we should not make such a big deal about it because
18:41there are so many vital issues in front of the country but that is not the bjp that is not their
18:47interest their interest is not in doing that their interest is in figuring out how to keep the people
18:52of india distracted so that they can help their crony capitalist friends make as much
18:58money as possible which they can get back from them through kickbacks that's the story this is as
19:04simple as it gets i don't understand what is so complicated about this so i'm sorry you know maria
19:11i don't understand no no i i don't think you should interrupt because i did not interrupt if you ask me
19:16a question if if if if if it helps the people uh people in parliament who's who somehow don't vote any
19:24stray dogs near them even though they don't care about stray dogs who actually may end up hurting
19:30the common citizens i apologize to you i apologize to you for the goodness of renuka chodri's heart
19:39i i apologize to you if that if that satiation can i come in now because the people of this country
19:47want the pjp to focus on the things that are important okay okay quickly 30 seconds
19:53i really don't understand i don't understand why an intelligent man like uh salman
20:04sos is really trivializing this debate we have no objections to the dog being brought it is she
20:10who's dramatizing situations with her you know all kinds of weird sounds you know she's insulting her
20:16own own party members who want to attend parliament by saying that those those who are inside are the
20:22ones who bite you know if you don't have self dignity at least your congress party mps who have
20:27self dignity will not even they will not tolerate this language and yes we want to proceed ahead so
20:33please stop defending her call her out tell her that this is not the way to behave in parliament and
20:39let's get down to business i don't understand the need for you to defend all of all of these things and
20:44to trivialize the whole thing by saying you know that we are disrupting parliament because of it of
20:48course you yeah and today the ai video that your ragini naik your spokesperson ragini naik brings out
20:53you know what kind of mentality are you trying to project do you have a problem with self-made
20:57individuals who don't come from a political dynasty who grow up who come up the hard way to become
21:02prime minister and ragini naik every time she posts such crap she gets promoted with some responsibility
21:08or the other she had a good responsibility in bihar elections after posting all of these for the last
21:12one month what culture are you promoting in this country i think the congress need i mean what good
21:16responsibility we have seen how how the entire opposition was decimated in bihar
21:23elections and and the fact is that they did not put up a good fight that's also a truth as someone
21:29who was covering the elections we saw how it was playing out between between the congress and the rjd
21:33go ahead salman quickly 30 seconds and then the last word to neerja chowdhury i think this this uh
21:42kind of outrage that the bgp expresses it's basically nothing but drama this this isn't this is nothing but
21:49drama i again ask you have you had a very serious discussion about air pollution or did you your
21:59party your four engine serkar in delhi from prime minister to chief minister to lieutenant governor to
22:05the mcd did you manipulate data on air quality in in delhi would you have a discussion in parliament
22:13about how your government manipulated air quality uh monitors in delhi will you have a discussion
22:19about that why won't you have a discussion about that why are you not outraged about that
22:26why are you not outraged about the the air that is killing our children absolutely the concern about
22:35about the air pollution is is something that should concern all politicians across party lines because
22:41delhi right now is a gas chamber it's unbreathable how how sickening it is go ahead neerja chowdhury
22:48you get the last word on the show tonight please go absolutely i agree with you i would put
22:51the delhi air on top of the list of what parliament should discuss you are cutting short the lives of
22:58our children and nothing has been done year after year so this i would say certainly is priority i would
23:04just sum up maria in one line please you know we address each other as gg even where people are younger
23:12but let us restore courtesy in our public discourse
23:19okay i think that's the right way to end this discussion because there has to be courtesy there
23:25has to be decorum in parliamentary proceedings and parliamentary practices as well that's all from
23:30me on this edition neerja chowdhury queen sina salmansos really appreciate your time thank you so much for
23:37watching new strat
23:37or watching new strat
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