Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla
– Photo : Sansad TV
Expansion
After some Lok Sabha members raised slogans during the oath taking, Speaker Om Birla has amended the rule according to which elected MPs cannot make any additional remarks while taking oath as members of the House. Birla has added a new section in ‘Direction-1’ in the ‘Speaker’s Instructions’ to regulate certain matters related to the functioning of the House, which was not part of the rules.
As per the amendment in ‘Direction-1’, the new Clause-3 now states that a member shall make and subscribe an oath or affirmation and “shall not use any word or expression as prefix or suffix to the oath or make any remark.”
This amendment in the rule has been made after many members raised controversial slogans while taking oath last week. One member also raised a slogan in support of a war-torn country in West Asia, which was also objected to by many members. The Lok Sabha Speaker had urged the members to stick to the prescribed format while taking oath, but it had no effect.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju had alleged that several members used the crucial occasion of taking oath or affirmation to send a political message.