Difficult to work in such circumstances: Ansari

Pained by Bahujan Samaj Party chief Mayawati's critical remarks against him, Rajya Sabha Chairman Hamid Ansari on Wednesday said it would be difficult for him to work in such circumstances.

"I am upset, it will be difficult to work in such a situation," he said according to leaders of political parties present at a meeting with him.

His remarks came in the presence of Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kamal Nath, Leader of the Opposition in RS Arun Jaitley and several other opposition leaders soon after the Upper House was adjourned for the day.

This prompted Kamal Nath to have separate consultations with Mayawati in the lobby of the House. Soon after, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh called up Ansari and conveyed his distress and concern over the developments in the Rajya Sabha.

At the All India Congress Committee briefing, Congress spokesperson Renuka

Chowdhury was guarded in her response on Mayawati's outburst against the Rajya Sabha Chairman given the fact that the BSP has bailed out the government on the FDI in retail issue last week and needs the support for passage of key reforms bills in Parliament.

Though Chowdhury said that attacking Ansari was 'regrettable', she at the same time added that this is an issue that impacted one of the largest states in the country and the parties concerned should have the opportunity to say what they feel about it.

In the evening, Ansari expunged the controversial remarks of Mayawati from the record of the Rajya Sabha.