With some MPs raising slogans during oath as Lok Sabha members, Speaker Om Birla has given directions to add a new clause that specifies that a member shall not use any word or expression as a prefix or suffix to the form of oath or affirmation.
Om Birla made amendment to ‘Direction 1’ of ‘Directions by the Speaker’ and after clause (2) a new clause (3) has been added with effect from June 28.
“A Member shall make and subscribe oath or affirmation, as the case may be, in accordance with the form set out for the purpose, in the Third Schedule to the Constitution of India and shall not use any word or expression or make any remark as a prefix or suffix to the form of oath or affirmation,” the new clause states.
The Speaker had earlier expressed concern over members using words beyond the requisite text while taking oath and had said he will form a panel.
During the oath-taking in Urdu, AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi, who secured his fifth term from the Hyderabad constituency, expressed pride in his home state of Telangana, invoked BR Ambedkar, and raised a ‘Jai Palestine’ slogan, prompting a contentious reaction from the government benches.
As per extant rules, Asaduddin Owaisi can be disqualified from his Lok Sabha membership, for demonstrating adherence to a foreign State, that is Palestine.
Please note: @LokSabhaSectt pic.twitter.com/wh7bYbep8p— Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) June 25, 2024
Some members had raised slogans like “Jai Samvidhan” and “Jai Hindu Rashtra” while taking oath. A member had also raised “Jai Palestine” slogan.
Under the new rules, action can be taken against MPs to ensure that there are no deviations from the process, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said.
The first session of eighteenth Lok Sabha concluded on July 2. New members took oath and the House adopted motion of thanks to the President’s address after a debate. Prime Minister Narendra Modi replied to the debate.
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