Shloka 2.12.6
द्वादशः सर्गः — Kaikeyi’s Boons and Dasaratha’s Moral Collapse (Ayodhya Kanda 12)
चिरेण तु नृप स्संज्ञां प्रतिलभ्य सुदुःखितः।।।।कैकेयीमब्रवीत्क्रुद्धःप्रदहन्निव चक्षुषा।
nṛśaṃse pāpasaṅkalpe kṣudre duṣkṛtakāriṇi |
kiṃ nu duḥkham alīkaṃ vā mayi rāme ca paśyasi ||
O cruel one—of sinful resolve, petty and given to wrongdoing—what fault or offense do you claim to see in me or in Rāma?
Regaining his consciousness after a long time, the king in deep grief and with eyes as though burning in anger looked at Kaikeyi and said:
Dharma requires that blame and punishment be grounded in real fault; Daśaratha challenges the absence of any just cause for harming Rāma.
Overwhelmed and angered, Daśaratha directly confronts Kaikeyī, demanding the rationale for her harsh demands.
Defense of the innocent: Daśaratha asserts Rāma’s blamelessness, though his speech also shows the human frailty of anger.