'If I Behaved Inappropriately, I Apologise': Jaya Bachchan in Her Rajya Sabha Farewell Speech

New Delhi: Veteran Indian actress and Rajya Sabha member Jaya Bachchan apologised for her behaviour and her various remarks in the Upper House of Parliament over the years. Bachchan represented the Samajwadi Party in Rajya Sabha.

Known for her fiery speeches and questioning, Jaya Bachchan sometimes tended to go overboard, as per some people in the House. 

When a question on aviation (Question No.18) was skipped in the Rajya Sabha recently, she asked for a reason for the same. Addressing the Vice-President of India and Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar, Jaya Bachchan said, “If you or the deputy chairman ask us to sit, we will, but we won't do so when another member gestures at us and tells us to sit. It is our right to question. You tell us you can't take up a question or that there is a problem and it will be taken up later, we understand, we are not schoolchildren. But treat us respectfully.”

Dhankhar later said that Question No.18 would be taken up after the next one. "It will be taken up in a composed manner (and) try to find a way out. Jaya Bachchan ji is a very senior member and if she has a sentiment, then it is bound to be serious with me," he said.

Jaya Bachchan apologises in Parliament

While delivering her farewell speech in Parliament, the Mili actress apologised for her behaviour in Rajya Sabha.

"People often ask me why I get angry. That's my nature, I can't change myself. If I don't like or agree with something, I lose my cool. If I (have) behaved inappropriately with any of you, or got personal, I apologise," said Jaya Bachchan.

There will be at least 58 members of the Rajya Sabha who will be retiring this year. Apart from Jaya Bachchan, these include former prime minister Manmohan Singh, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national president JP Nadda, as well as political names such as Mansukh Mandaviya, Bhupender Yadav, Narayan Rane, Rajeev Chandrashekhar and Ashwini Vaishnaw, among others.

"The retirement of our esteemed colleagues will undoubtedly leave a void. It is often said that 'every beginning has an end and every end has a new beginning'," said Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar.