Irked by the developments in the Rajya Sabha over the women's bill, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh telephoned Vice President Hamid Ansari and expressed regret over attempts by some Samajwadi Party members to attack him in the House.

The prime minister called Ansari on Monday to express regret over the behaviour of some Samajwadi Party members who tried to attack him, sources in the vice president's office said on Tuesday. During pandemonium over the measure, Nand Kishore Yadav and Kamal Akhtar of SP had led the combined offensive of their party and the Rashtriya Janata Dal in opposing the bill.

Yadav had tried to attack the chairman by attempting to climb on to the podium. He had uprooted the mike and thrown the stationery placed on Ansari's table even as some other members were seen threatening to reach the podium. The security attendants had to swing into action and shield the chairman.

Akhtar had also climbed the table of the Rajya Sabha's official reporters, chanting slogans against the bill, while some members, including the Rashtriya Janata Dal's Rajniti Prasad, had torn the copy of the bill and chucked pieces of the paper towards the chair.