Laughter In Raj Assembly After Shanti Dhariwal Looks Up Dictionary To Check Oppn's 'Guru Ghantal' Barb. WATCH

An exchange between minister Shanti Dhariwal and Deputy Leader of the Opposition Rajendra Rathod took place over the latter's comment of 'guru ghantal' in the Rajasthan Assembly.

Reacting to a comment by the Opposition, in which he was referred to as 'Guru Ghantal', Rajasthan Minister said he was indeed 'Guru' or teacher for them.

Source : Instagram/shantidhariwal_official

A funny exchange took place in the Rajasthan Assembly on Tuesday between Deputy Leader of the Opposition Rajendra Rathod and minister Shanti Dhariwal. The minister sought to get back at the opposition for calling him 'Guru Ghantal' and came up with a barb of his own.

Reacting to an earlier comment by the Opposition, in which he was referred to as 'Guru Ghantal', Parliamentary Affairs Minister Shanti Dhariwal said: "I want explain to this House that it is not good to speak falsehoods. You [Rathod] called me 'guru ghantal'. When I asked its meaning, you said that I was a guru [teacher] who just rings the ghanta [bell] and goes away." "But it was wrong. I looked up the meaning of 'guru ghantal' in the dictionary and here's what I found. Guru means teacher...," he trailed off, taking a dig by saying: "A riverfront is being built in Kota where a bell tower is being installed. The tower will be 35-foot high and 25-foot wide. When the bell will be rung, its sound will be carried for eight miles."

"So, 'ghantal' essentially means you will have to listen to my voice, whether you like it or not," Dhariwal said.

In Hindi, 'guru ghantal' means a cunning or sly person.

Replying to Dhariwal's comment, Rathod said that the minister was essentially accepting that he was 'guru ghantal': "So, if we will call you Shanti Ghantal from tomorrow, hope no one will be offended." To this, Dhariwal retorted: "But add 'guru' before my name."

This invoked laughter all around the assembly. A few other MLAs, seemingly from the Opposition, tried to join in the conversation, but speaker Rajendra Rathore dismissed them saying: "Why are you trying to jump into this. You won't get this. This is beyond your understanding.

The bell that Dhariwal was talking about is part of the Chambal riverfront development project. It is being built at a cost of Rs 700 crore, reported First Post. The project will consist of numerous facilities such as a cafe, handicraft bazaar, skating area, art galleries, restaurants, kids zone, yoga street, a giant Chambal goddess statue, boating, tall Buddhist 3D statue, Nehru statue, amphitheatre, laser show, sculpture park and Wi-Fi river front. The project is set to be completed by the end of 2022 and spans over 3km on both banks of the Chambal river, with 22 ghats to be constructed. The bell will be the world's largest such installation.

A 40-metre high statue of Chambal Mata, the state's largest statue of Maharana Pratap, and a "Sahitya Chowk" will also be constructed.