New Delhi: Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Anurag Thakur on Thursday accused a Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP, without naming him, of using an e-cigarette in the Lok Sabha, prompting Speaker Om Birla to assure action.
During Question Hour, while asking a supplementary question, Thakur expressed surprise whether e-cigarettes were allowed in the House. When Birla replied in the negative, the BJP leader said that a TMC member had been continuously using an e-cigarette in the House for the past several days.
Demand for action against TMC MP
Following this, several BJP members demanded action against the opposition MP. Amidst the uproar, Birla urged the member to maintain the dignity of the House. He said that if a written complaint is filed, he would take action. E-cigarettes were banned in the country a few years ago.
The accusation comes at a time when electronic cigarettes are banned across the country. India has declared e-cigarettes illegal under the Electronic Cigarettes (Prohibition) Act, 2019, making their production, sale, import, export, and advertising illegal, with violations punishable by imprisonment and fines.
Debate between Amit Shah and Rahul Gandhi
This issue surfaced a day after a heated debate in the Lok Sabha between Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi over the ongoing Special Intensive Review (SIR) of voter lists and alleged attempts at ‘vote theft’.
Taking a dig at Rahul Gandhi, Amit Shah said that the issue was raised because the Congress can no longer win elections through corrupt practices and stated that the reason for the oldest party’s defeat in recent elections was its leadership, not EVMs or vote theft.
