Trinamool Congress (TMC) Member of Parliament Mohammed Nadimul Haque on Wednesday urged the government to confer the Bharat Ratna on Indian-origin NASA astronaut Sunita Williams, recognising her exceptional contributions to space exploration.
Williams, 59, recently returned to Earth after spending more than nine months in space.
Raising the matter during Zero Hour in the Rajya Sabha, Haque contended that Williams’ achievements had long been celebrated in India and that awarding her the country’s highest civilian honour would be a fitting tribute.
“Giving her Bharat Ratna would be the ultimate celebration,” he stated.
Haque also mentioned that West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had previously advocated for Williams to receive the honour in recognition of her achievements.
During his speech, Haque made references to a late Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader from Gujarat, drawing objections from Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and BJP members. The remarks were later expunged from the records by Deputy Chairman Harivansh.
Intervening during the session, Sitharaman asserted that making a case for Bharat Ratna should not be used as an opportunity to “cast aspersions” or bring unrelated matters into the discussion.
“It is one thing to ask for Bharat Ratna for someone as meritorious as Sunita Williams, but in the process to bring in unrelated issues and references to people no longer with us is absolutely uncalled for,” she said, demanding that Haque’s comments be removed from the record.
Harivansh assured the House that irrelevant portions of the speech would be deleted.
Williams, whose father hails from Mehsana district in Gujarat, had visited India in 2007 and was honoured on multiple occasions.
She was conferred with the Padma Bhushan by the then central government, but Haque alleged that the Gujarat government at the time did not officially felicitate her.
“A few days ago, she expressed her desire to visit her father’s home country and their ancestral village,” he said, adding that Williams’ accomplishments were a source of pride for India’s space sector and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO).
Williams was among the crew of NASA’s SpaceX Dragon spacecraft, which returned to Earth last month after splashing down off the coast of Tallahassee, Florida.
She was joined by fellow astronauts Nick Hague, Butch Wilmore, and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov.
Her mission, initially planned for eight days, was extended to over nine months due to technical issues with Boeing’s Starliner capsule, which was deemed unsafe following helium leaks and thruster failures. The spacecraft ultimately returned without them in September.
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