NEW DELHI: The Lok Sabha witnessed a light-hearted exchange on Friday when leader of opposition Rahul Gandhi remarked that both he and Prime Minister Narendra Modi “don’t have the wife issue,” drawing laughter from MPs.Gandhi made the remark while participating in a debate on three bills proposing amendments to the women’s quota law and the setting up of a delimitation commission.“All of us in this room have been influenced, taught, and have learnt a lot from women in our lives — from mothers, sisters, and wives,” the Congress MP said.“Of course, the prime minister and I don’t have the wife issue, so we don’t get that input, but we have our mothers and sisters,” he added, referring to parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju’s light-hearted comment that he (Rijiju) had been scolded at home for not writing a poem for his wife, unlike law minister Arjun Ram Meghwal.Gandhi also lauded his sister and fellow MP, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, for her speech in the Lok Sabha.“Yesterday, I watched my sister achieve in five minutes what I haven’t been able to do in 20 years of my political career — make Amit Shah smile,” he said, drawing laughter.Earlier, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra had accused the Centre of bringing the bill to strengthen the BJP ahead of the 2029 Lok Sabha elections, and drew a parallel between Union home minister Amit Shah and Chanakya, the advisor to Chandragupta Maurya, the first ruler of the Maurya dynasty.“If Chanakya were alive today, he would be surprised to see the BJP’s conspiracy to win elections,” she quipped — a remark that also made Shah laugh.
