Rare bonhomie in Parliament: 'Outstanding' Sushma Swaraj comes in for lavish praise

Parliament witnessed a rare moment on Wednesday.

New Delhi: Union External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Wednesday came in for whole-hearted praise from the Opposition benches in the Lok Sabha.

"I want to thank Sushma Swaraj ji. She is doing an exceptionally good job to save our people abroad," Aam Aadmi Party MP Bhagwant Maan said during the Question Hour.

"Recently, 13 people of my constituency were made slaves in Saudi Arabia. I went to meet External Affairs Ministry officials who acted immediately. As a result, all these people and eight others were saved and finally returned safely," Maan added.

Another AAP leader Dharamveer Gandhi also praised the minister.

"I will not ask any question. I have stood up only to thank the minister. We always get her help whenever needed. She has done a lot for the people of Punjab," Gandhi said.

Biju Janata Dal MP Baijayant Panda echoed the views, saying, "As a minister, her response has been outstanding."

Rashtriya Janata Dal MP Rajesh Ranjan alias Pappu Yadav joined in the chorus and hailed the minister for giving reply in Hindi despite the fact that questions were asked in English.

"I will thank Sushma ji for speaking in Hindi. Despite questions being asked in English, she has replied in Hindi, which is good. There are some members in the house who despite knowing Hindi very well, respond only in English," he said.

The lavish praise on Sushma Swaraj made Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan wonder: "There is no question but thanks only!"

The minister then got up and said with folded hands: "I thank all those who thanked me."