In the midst of the discussion around the 50-page list of terms that the Lok Sabha secretariat deemed inappropriate for use in Parliament, it is significant to mention how Congress President Sonia Gandhi exhibited a rare outburst of wrath in the Lok Sabha in August 2012 after the treasury benches took strong exception to a remark by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader L.K. Advani. Advani’s statement that “UPA-2 is an illegitimate government” sparked outrage in the House.
Immensely enraged Sonia Gandhi persuaded Congress Members of Parliament (MPs) to protest. During the spat between the ruling and Opposition benches, Meira Kumar, the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, urged Advani to retract his statement during the altercation between the opposition and government benches. Eventually, Advani’s remarks were expunged from the records of the house.
Under fire from Congress leaders over his remarks, Advani clarified that his comments referred to the 2008 confidence vote for which “crores of rupees” were spent to save the government.
“The UPA-2 is illegitimate. It has never happened in the history of India…crores of rupees were spent to get votes,” Advani said sparking anger among the treasury benches.
Advani’s remarks raised the hackles of Sonia Gandhi, who appeared animated with fury over his comments calling the UPA-II government illegitimate. Gandhi strongly protested against the comments and egged on her party members to vociferously register their protest against Advani’s remarks, following which the BJP leader was forced to withdraw the remarks.
Notably, ahead of the Monsoon Session, which starts on July 18, an argument broke out Thursday over a 50-page list of words and phrases issued by the Lok Sabha secretariat deemed unacceptable for use in Parliament. The opposition called the unparliamentary language list a “gag order” designed to protect the Modi government from “criticism.”
The controversy
A new handbook published by the Lok Sabha Secretariat lists a number of expressions that have been deemed unprofessional and improper for usage in the Parliament and that, at the chair’s discretion, would not be captured when the parliamentary proceedings are being recorded.
The handbook states that any criticism of the Chair in both chambers, whether in English or Hindi, will be deemed unparliamentary and will be expunged from the records of Parliament. It contains terms that have been removed from the records of both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha in recent decades.
The opposition called the unparliamentary language list a “gag order” intended to insulate the Narendra Modi government from “criticism,” but Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla stressed that “no words had been banned.” He stated that it is the Chair’s discretion to remove words.
It is worth noting that the list is not a new recommendation, but rather a compilation of words that have already been eliminated from the Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha, or state legislatures’ recordings. The opposition has made an unreasonable fuss about the subject.
What rules say
The practice of compiling expunged terms has reportedly been in use since 1954, and the list simply acts as a guide for MPs. These phrases were viewed as being unparliamentary even during the UPA’s government. In the past year, 62 new words have been added to the list; some of them may now be under evaluation.
Additionally, in accordance with Rule 380 (Expunction) of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Lok Sabha, the Speaker may, at his or her discretion, order that words used in debate be omitted from the proceedings of the House if they are deemed to be defamatory, indecent, improper, or undignified.
In both the English and the Indian languages, there are literally thousands of words and phrases that are regarded as inappropriate. The Presiding Officers are responsible for keeping such phrases out of the records of Parliament. The presiding officers’ choices determine when new words and phrases are added to the list.
For their convenience, the Lok Sabha Secretariat has produced a sizable book named “Unparliamentary Expressions.” The most recent of these books was published in 2009, under the UPA government. Since then, the list has been uploaded to the MPs portal and the Lok Sabha intranet.
The Lok Sabha Speaker, Om Birla, said on Thursday that there are no terms or expressions that are forbidden in the House and that members are free to speak their minds. He said that the government has no influence over the choice to expunge and that it is made purely at the Speaker’s or Chairman’s direction.
“It has been a routine practice since 1959. No words have been banned. Members are free to express their views; no one can snatch that right of members, but the expression of their words should be as per decorum of Parliament,” Birla told the media. “Earlier, a book of such unparliamentary words used to be released. To avoid wastage of paper, we have put it on the internet,” he further added.
“Expunged words” during UPA
According to a report, the list from 2012, i.e., under the UPA government, includes even commonly used phrases like ashamed, falsehood, corrupt, nonsense, bundles of lies, fool, lawlessness, liar, cheating, looted, dishonest, dishonesty, fraudulent, mad, mislead, goons, James Bond, and bribe.
