The Congress on Tuesday backed the suspension of seven members from the Rajya Sabha for their unruly behaviour over the women's bill, for the remaining part of the session, saying the provocation was 'rarest of the rare'.
"The decision of the Chair was certainly rarest of the rare but the provocation too was rarest of the rare," party spokesman Abhishek Singhvi told reporters outside Parliament House.
Seven members belonging to Samajwadi Party, Rashtriya Janata Dal, Lok Janshakti Party and an unattached MP were suspended for their unruly behaviour in the House on Monday over the Women's Reservation Bill.
Singhvi pointed out that the Upper House had been adjourned five times on Monday, due to the disruptions caused by the MPs, and the decision to suspend them was taken with a 'heavy heart'.
"A small minority cannot take the country to ransom," the spokesman said, adding that it was a matter of time before the bill was passed in the House.
"The question is not if but when," he said, adding that from the time the bill was first introduced in 1996 to today, the government was now closest to passing the bill.
Asked about the threat of SP and RJD to withdraw outside support to the government if the bill was passed in its present form, the Congress leader said the party was not dependent on such support.
"Even if we were dependent (on their support), we would not have desisted in getting the bill passed due to national interest," Singhvi said.
On a query as to when the bill will be passed, he replied that a specific time-frame cannot be given and it could even happen today. "This is an idea which cannot be postponed indefinitely," Singhvi said.
Meanwhile, All India Congress Committee General Secretary Janardan Dwivedi questioned the motive of the Bharatiya Janata Party, in asserting that it will not vote on the Women's Reservation Bill in the Rajya Sabha, without holding a discussion on it.
He claimed that the bill has been discussed at various fora and asking for a discussion at this stage suggests that the intentions of the BJP were not clear.
