Vice President Jagdeep Dhankar on Saturday came down heavily on Congress leader P Chidambaram over his remark about the three new criminal laws being "drafted by part-timers", saying that it is an "inexcusable insult" to the Parliament.
Dhankar, who is on a two-day visit to Kerala, said that he was "shocked beyond words" when he read Chidambaram's interview to leading national daily this morning, wherein he said, "the new laws were drafted by part-timers".
"Are we part-timers in the Parliament?" the VP asked, adding that, "it is an inexcusable insult to the wisdom of the Parliament...I do not have words strong enough to condemn such a narrative being set afloat and a MP being labelled as a part-timer."
Dhankar appealed to Chidambaram to withdraw "this derogatory, defamatory and highly insulting" remark about the Members of the Parliament (MPs), hoping that the Congress leader does so.
The Vice President was addressing the 12th convocation of the Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST) in Thiruvananthapuram.
"When informed minds knowingly lead you astray, we need to be on guard," Dhankar said.
The Rajya Sabha chairman said that the person, who served as India's Finance Minister, a Parliamentarian for a long time and currently is a Rajya Sabha member, "stunned" him.
Referring to the three new criminal laws, Dhankar said he took pride in the fact that the Parliament freed the nation from the "colonial legacy" by giving these three laws that were of "epochal dimension".
"From Dand Vidhan (penal law) we have come to Nyay Vidhan (law of justice)," he said.
Dhankar noted that every MP had a chance to contribute when the three criminal laws -- Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita and Bharatiya Saksha Adhiniyam -- were being debated in the House.
"With a heavy heart, I am sharing with you, that this honourable gentleman, a distinguished member of Parliament who has a great background as finance minister, did not use his lung power. He gave total rest to his vocal chords while debate was going on," he said.
Dhankar said that Chidambaram must own up his accountability for the "failure of duty on your part, an act of omission/commission, dereliction of duty, which can never be explained".
The VP claimed that not only the Congress MP, but other distinguished colleagues from the legal fraternity, including senior advocated, "did not come forward to help the nation".
"They had an opportunity to make this point in the Parliament. It was a failure on his (Chidambaram) part to perform his constitutional duty and obligation. How can we countenance such a man, speaking in high decibel, trying to seek resonance from the people only to unsettle the mechanism," Dhankar added.
The VP said that he was "shocked beyond words", urging to people to "beware" of those who deliberately, "by strategy, by a way of narrative, try to run down our nation, demean our institutions and taint our progress".
"They do not see the writing on the wall and engage in criticism just for the sake of it," Dhankar said.
Upon his arrival at the Thiruvananthapuram international airport, Dhankar was welcomed by Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan and Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
(With PTI inputs)
