The inaugural session of Parliament following the Lok Sabha elections is currently in progress. On the fourth day of the session, an incident drew significant attention when Speaker Om Birla reprimanded Congress MP Deepender Singh Hooda.The incident began as Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, representing Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, returned to his seat after taking his oath. Upon completing his oath, Tharoor raised the slogan Jai Samvidhan (Hail the Constitution). As he proceeded to shake hands with Speaker Om Birla and head back to his seat, the Speaker interjected, noting that Tharoor was already swearing an oath to the Constitution.क्या अब देश की संसद में भी जय संविधान बोलना ग़लत हो गया हैदेश की जनता फैसला करेगी कि संसद में जय संविधान बोलना गलत है या जय संविधान बोलने वाले को टोकना गलत है। pic.twitter.com/Rl1kEJOcz9— Deepender S Hooda (@DeependerSHooda) June 27, 2024OM Birlas ReactionAt this juncture, Congress MP Deepender Hooda stood up, asserting that there should be no objection to Tharoors slogan. Speaker Birla responded sharply, instructing Hooda not to offer unsolicited advice on what should or should not be objected to and to take his seat.Priyanka Gandhis ResponseReacting to the incident, Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra voiced her objections on social media platform X (formerly Twitter). She questioned whether it was impermissible to say Jai Samvidhan in the Indian Parliament. Priyanka criticised the Speakers objection, highlighting that while ruling party members were not stopped from raising unparliamentary and unconstitutional slogans, an objection was raised against an opposition MP for saying Jai Samvidhan.Accusations of Constitutional WeakeningPriyanka further stated that opposition to the Constitution, which emerged during the elections, is now taking a new form aimed at weakening it. She questioned if the same Constitution that governs the Parliament, which every member swears by, and which provides security to every citizen, would now be opposed to suppressing the oppositions voice.Congress Spokespersons CriticismCongress spokesperson Supriya Shrinate also criticised the Speaker on X, expressing astonishment that the Speaker had an issue with saying Jai Samvidhan in Parliament. She remarked that it was ironic for the Speaker to object to hailing the very Constitution that governs the House. Shrinate also highlighted the election results, noting that while Speaker Birla won by a margin of 41,974 votes, Deepender Hooda secured his seat with a margin of 3,45,298 votes.
