New Delhi: The junior home minister shared a video clip showing a laughing Surpanakha that mysteriously disappeared after charges were levelled that he was comparing her with Congress MP Renuka Chowdhury for guffawing at the Prime Minister.

The clip was posted on the Facebook page of minister of state for home Kiren Rijiju. It was clubbed with footage showing senior BJP leaders and ministers thumping their desks in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday after Prime Minister Narendra Modi responded to Chowdhury's guffaw by saying "such laughter has been heard for the first time after the Ramayana serial".

Chowdhury had burst into laughter when Modi retraced the roots of Aadhaar to a plan mooted by L.K. Advani in 1988.

"This (Rijiju's action) is highly objectionable. I am going to file a privilege motion on this issue," Chowdhury said on Thursday.

In the Ramayana, Surpanakha (the name means fingernails like winnowing fans) is Ravan's sister who tries in vain to seduce Ram and kill Sita but gets her nose chopped off by Lakshman.

As controversy erupted, the clip vanished from the minister's Facebook page. Repeated calls from this newspaper to the minister were not answered. "Sir is busy now.... Please feel free to talk to him in Parliament tomorrow," said his additional private secretary Sonam Gechen Agola.

Late on Thursday night, Rijiju tweeted: "Renukaji, I fail to comprehend in which way did I insult the women dignity? I merely referred to PM's equanimity."

The minister appeared to be referring to his tweet that said "despite such vexatious laugh by Renuka Chaudharyji, PM Narendra Modi ji didn't get irritated".

The minister did not make any mention of the video shared earlier on his Facebook page.