The political battle between the Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the BJP in next year’s Assembly elections in West Bengal is expected to be fierce and on Thursday found its echo in Parliament.
It all started during the Question Hour, when former minister and BJP’s Hamirpur MP Anurag Thakur stood up and asked Speaker Om Birla if smoking e-cigarettes was allowed in the House while it remains banned in the rest of the country. With the Speaker taken aback, like many MPs present in the Lok Sabha, Thakur alleged, without naming anyone, “A TMC MP is sitting and smoking an e-cigarette. In fact, a TMC MP has been constantly smoking e-cigarettes in the House for the past several days.”
While Shatabdi Roy, the TMC’s deputy leader in the Lok Sabha, was seen looking around and gesturing to Thakur to let the issue go, the BJP MP went on to say, “Sir, this is a serious matter … There should be action against such MPs.” Although Birla tried to continue with the proceedings, several BJP MPs stood up to join Thakur in protest.
“Everyone should follow the rules to protect the dignity of the House. If any such issue comes before me, strict action will be taken,” said the Speaker, adding that he would take action if a written complaint was lodged. E-cigarettes are banned under the Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes Act, 2019.
Thakur later told The Indian Express that he had submitted a written complaint to the Speaker but did not name anyone, keeping the suspense going about who he was accusing. “Let there be an inquiry … It will come out. This is going to be a big issue in the coming days,” he claimed.
Later in the day, senior TMC MP Saugata Roy was smoking outside the Parliament building when Union Ministers Gajendra Shekhawat and Giriraj Singh went up to him and told him he should not be smoking in a public place. Roy tried to hide his cigarette from view and said smoking was allowed in open spaces.
However, the BJP leaders did not relent. “Keeping the public health in mind, you should not be smoking,” Shekhawat said, while Singh added, “It is bad for your health.”
“You are putting our health also in danger … You have no right to put our health in danger, dada,” Shekhawat told Roy.
Though there was no bitterness in the public exchange, leaders from both sides said it was just an early signal of what could end up as an acrimonious battle in next year’s Assembly elections in Bengal, which is next on the BJP’s radar.
TMC MP Kirti Azad’s reaction to Thakur’s complaint echoed this. “There is a system and if he (the BJP MP) sees any TMC MP smoking an e-cigarette, he has to give proof for it. These allegations are baseless as long as they are without any evidence. What if I say Anurag Thakur takes 30%-40% commission for his MPLAS funds? It cannot be true without proof. I am surprised that the Chair is allowing a member to raise such allegations without proof,” Azad said.