Frenzied slogans in LS as MPs take oath

Tribune News Service
New Delhi, June 18

The second day of oath-taking in the 17th Lok Sabha today was marked by raising of slogans such as ‘Jai Shri Ram’, ‘Jai Maa Durga’ and ‘Allahu Akbar’ by members with some even engaging in raillery and heated exchanges.

The sloganeering went unabated ignoring the Chair’s direction to desist from it. Some members, especially from West Bengal, began their oath with sloganeering despite the presiding officer ruling that that no slogans will go on record.

When members from West Bengal, especially those belonging to Trinamool Congress, took oath, those from the treasury benches shouted ‘Jai Shri Ram’ slogan. TMC members countered with slogans like ‘Jai Hind’, ‘Jai Bengal’, ‘Jai Maa Durga’ and ‘Jai Mamata’.

TMC’s Kalyan Banerjee recited ‘Durga Path’ after concluding his oath, while his party colleague Abu Taher Khan began his oath with ‘Bismillah ar Rahman ar Rahim’ and ended with ‘Allahu Akbar’.

As West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee’s nephew Abhishek Banerjee’s name was called for oath, BJP members chanted ‘Jai Shri Ram’. Responding to the chanting, he said even Modiji is not so much popular in the House. Actor-turned-MP from Gorakhpur Ravi Kishan, took oath in a dramatic style, adding pauses with emphasis as he read the text. He chanted ‘Har Har Mahadev’ and ‘Guru Gorakhnath Ki Jai’.

While many BJP MPs ended their oath with chants of ‘Bharat Mata ki jai’ and ‘Jai Shri Ram’, Samajwadi Party MP from Sambhal Shafiqur Rahman Barq objected to ‘Vande Mataram’ slogan, drawing protests from treasury benches who demanded an apology from him.

AIMIM MP from Hyderabad Asaduddin Owaisi chanted ‘Jai Bheem, Jai Meem, Takbeer Allahu Akbar, Jai Hind’ after BJP members shouted ‘Jai Shri Ram’, ‘Bharat Mata ki jai’ and ‘Vande Mataram’ as he walked to take oath. BSP member Shyam Singh Yadav concluded his oath with “Jai Bheem, Jai Bharat, Jai Samajwad”. The Chair asked the members several times not to raise slogans but in vain.

Taking a dig, Congress president Rahul Gandhi asked BJP Arun Kumar Sagar, who chanted ‘Bharat Mata ki jai’ twice, to raise the slogan “one more time”. Gandhi again repeated “one more time” after next BJP MP Ajay Kumar also shouted “Bharat Mata ki jai”.

Kumar than retorted he would raise the slogan again if Gandhi chanted ‘jai’, following which Gandhi said ‘Jai Hind’ and was joined by other Congress members. BJP MP from Mathura Hema Malini concluded her oath with ‘Radhey, Radhey’ and a phrase from shloka in praise of Lord Krishna.