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As Congress leaders continued their protest, two men carrying large tiffin boxes walked up the stairs of the Rajasthan Assembly to feed the hungry MLAs. Inside the tiffin boxes were chapatis made from Bajra, gatte ki sabzi, garlic chutney, dum aloo, fogla raita and halwa among other dishes.
The protest stem from a BJP leader's remarks on former prime minister Indira Gandhi during question hour of the assembly yesterday. After a sleepover inside the premises, Congress leaders decided to fuel their resistance with a home-cooked feast. Congress MLA Anil Sharma took charge of catering duties, bringing food from his own kitchen. Mr Sharma's gesture follows a practice upheld by his family. His father, Bhanwarlal Sharma, was known for providing meals in the assembly during political standoffs. In previous instances, food had been arranged from Mr Sharma's home in similar situations.
The current standoff was triggered after state minister Avinash Gehlot referred to Indira Gandhi as "aapki dadi" (your grandmother). Congress MLAs took strong objection to the statement and demanded that the comments be expunged from the assembly records. The situation escalated when multiple party leaders, led by the Leader of Opposition Tikaram Jully, staged an overnight protest inside the assembly.
Mr Jully called for the removal of the minister's remarks. He accused the ruling party of attempting to divert attention from its own ministers' mistakes.
"The MLAs were ready, we had talked to the speaker but we did not get any reply from there. I also think that the government just wants to put out the message publicly that the Opposition is simply protesting and blocking, but there is nothing like that from our side. The Opposition is only asking that the remarks made on Indira Gandhi ji be taken back, the way they are making an issue of it and covering up the mistakes of their (BJP) ministers," Mr Jully was quoted as saying today by news agency ANI.
Congress MLAs argued that the Speaker could have resolved the issue by expunging the remarks but instead allowed tensions to escalate.
"All are equal (in the assembly), it is the duty of all of us and Assembly speaker to maintain dignity. Speaker could have ordered to expunge those remarks, but you are intentionally provoking the opposition. We had to spend the entire night here. People of the state are witnessing the stubbornness of the government," Mr Jully added.
Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister Premchand Bairwa defended the state government, stating that the minister's words were misinterpreted. He claimed that Avinash Gehlot had referred to Indira Gandhi as 'Didi' (elder sister) out of respect, but the Opposition exaggerated the matter for political gains.
"The incident took place inside the state Assembly yesterday, our Minister used the term 'Didi' (for former PM Indira Gandhi) out of respect. But, the opposition took it the wrong way. The Speaker told them that that part would be expunged. Even after that, the opposition did not listen and verbally attacked him. This is condemnable," he told ANI.
Minister Jogaram Patel also defended Mr Gehlot's choice of words and accused the Congress of creating unnecessary chaos.
As the situation escalated, Speaker Vasudev Devnani suspended six Congress MLAs for the remaining duration of the budget session. Those suspended included Govind Singh Dotasara, Deputy Leader of Opposition Ramkesh Meena, Amin Kagzi, Zakir Hussain Gasavat, Hakeem Ali Khan and Sanjay Kumar.