Renuka Chowdhury threatens privilege motion against Kiren Rijiju for video

Congress MP Renuka Chowdhury today threatened to file a privilege motion against Kiren Rijiju for tweeting a video of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's sarcastic jibe on her but the union minister said he was only referring to how he (Modi) was not annoyed despite a "vexatious" laugh.

"This is highly objectionable and I am going to file a privilege motion (in Rajya Sabha)," Chowdhury told reporters minutes after Rijiju posted the video of the prime minister's remarks on her in Rajya Sabha yesterday on his Twitter handle.

According to the union minister of state for home, the opposition Congress has been saying that Modi's remarks were breach of privilege but the Rajya Sabha chairman (M Venkaiah Naidu) remarked that such behaviour is unbecoming.


"I am only referring to how the prime minister didn't get annoyed. Despite such vexatious laugh by Renuka Chaudhary, the PM didn't get irritated," he said.

While replying to a debate on the motion of thanks to the President's address in the Rajya Sabha, Modi had claimed the concept of Aadhaar was mooted in 1998 by the then home minister L K Advani, who spoke about a universally used national identity card.

As Modi sought to shear the previous Congress government of the credit for Aadhaar, Chowdhury burst into a guffaw, drawing disapproval of Chairman Naidu.

"If you have some problem, go to a doctor, please," an irritated Naidu told Chowdhury.

Smiling broadly, Modi requested Naidu not to restrain the Congress MP.

"It is for the first time after the Ramayana serial that we are having the good fortune of hearing such laughter today," Modi said without elaborating, but apparently hinting at a negative character in the serial.

Chowdhury had also said she did not wish to respond to Modi's remarks, adding he had denigrated the status of a woman.