CHINESE WHISPERS

Gifts from NE

At the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) parliamentary party meeting, angavastram, brought by the party from the three northeastern states where elections were recently held, were distributed among party Members of Parliament. They were also offered prasad from Assam’s famous Kamakhya temple, which is believed by the faithful to be the protector of the Northeast region.

Protests irk Naidu

On Tuesday, Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu ( pictured) castigated Members of Parliament for displaying banners and placards as they entered the Well of the House. “This is not the way. This is Parliament; not a bazaar,” he said. Naidu said the MPs were insulting themselves and turning Parliament into a joke. Later, at a meeting with leaders of various political parties, Naidu said he didn’t wish to run the House if members continued to behave irresponsibly. The leader of the Opposition, Ghulam Nabi Azad, and others tried to placate Naidu. In the Rajya Sabha, barring the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Shiromani Akali Dal, members of nearly all other parties were in the Well of the House to protest on one issue or the other. This included the BJP ally, the Telugu Desam Party.

Just in case...

The Constitution Club, a club exclusively for Members of Parliament, held a badminton tournament on Tuesday. Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu inaugurated the tournament. A participating MP said the Constitution Club had been requested to keep at least two ambulances on call. The MP said several of the participating MPs were above 50 and could require medical help if they inadvertently overexerted themselves.