Parliament Standoff Escalates: Mallikarjun Kharge Claims 'Knee Injury' Amid BJP-Cong Clash Over Ambedkar Row

Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge has been added to the 'injury list' following a physical altercation on Thursday between MPs from the ruling party and the opposition.

In a letter to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Kharge stated he was "pushed by BJP MPs... (and) forced to sit down on the ground." He added, "This inflicted (an) injury on my knees, which have undergone surgery."

"Subsequently, Congress MPs brought me a chair and I was made to sit on it. With great difficulty, and with support from my colleagues, I limped to the House at 11 am," Kharge wrote.

The 82-year-old Congress leader had surgery on his left knee in June 2017 at Delhi's AIIMS.

Kharge, who has been leading counterattacks against the BJP and Home Minister Amit Shah after Shah's controversial " Ambedkar is the fashion" remark in Parliament this week, urged Birla to order an inquiry into the incident, calling it an assault "not just on me... but also the Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha."

Protests, counter-protests, brawls, and a police complaint against Rahul Gandhi disrupted Parliament as the BJP and the opposition, led by Congress, clashed over Shah's remark.

The BJP has alleged that two of its MPs, Pratap Sarangi and Mukesh Rajput, were "seriously injured" by Gandhi. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju criticised Gandhi, saying, "... how can he use force in Parliament? Have you learnt kung fu to beat other MPs?"

The ruling party has indicated plans to file a police complaint against Gandhi.

Gandhi, however, denied causing any injury to Sarangi or Rajput. Speaking to reporters, he claimed it was he and his colleagues, including Kharge, who were physically assaulted while attempting to enter Parliament. "I was trying to go inside... but BJP MPs were trying to stop me; they pushed me away and threatened me... we have the right to go inside," he said.

Sarangi, one of the injured BJP MPs, said he fell and hurt his head after a third person, as yet unidentified, fell on him. Sarangi alleged that Gandhi had pushed this third person.

The row follows Shah's comment about Dr BR Ambedkar, which triggered a fierce backlash from the opposition. The opposition is demanding an apology from Shah and has called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi to dismiss him.

The opposition's aggressive stance appears to have rattled the ruling party, with both Modi and Shah, along with other Union Cabinet members, issuing public statements on the controversy.

On Wednesday evening, Shah accused the opposition of "distorting facts" after he had highlighted "examples of how the Constitution was attacked and wounded by the Congress (when in power)."

Shortly before Shah's statement, Modi declared, "If the Congress and its rotten ecosystem think malicious lies can hide their misdeeds of several years, especially their insult towards Dr Ambedkar, they are mistaken!"