After an outcry from the Opposition, the Centre said this list is not new, but merely a compilation of words already expunged in the Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha and state legislatures and that it is brought out every year
A new booklet issued by the Lok Sabha Secretariat has listed out a slew of terms that will be considered unparliamentary in both Houses.
The booklet comes ahead of the Monsoon Session beginning on 18 July.
Let’s take a closer look at everything you need to know:
What terms will be considered unparliamentary?
The booklet lists terms such as jumlajeevi, baal buddhi, ‘Covid spreader’ and ‘Snoopgate’ and even commonly used words like ‘ashamed’, ‘abused, ‘betrayed’, ‘corrupt’, ‘drama’, ‘hypocrisy’ and ‘incompetent’.
‘Anarchist’, ‘Shakuni’, ‘dictatorial’, ‘taanashah‘, ‘taanashahi‘, ‘Jaichand’, ‘vinash purush‘, ‘Khalistani’ and ‘khoon se kheti‘ would also be expunged if used during debates or otherwise in both Houses.
The booklet further lists’dohra charitra‘, ‘nikamma‘, ‘nautanki‘, ‘dhindora peetna‘ and ‘behri sarkar‘ as unparliamentary expressions, according to the booklet.
Among some of the English words listed by the secretariat as unparliamentary include ‘bloodshed’, ‘bloody’, ‘betrayed’, ‘ashamed’, ‘abused’, ‘cheated, ‘chamcha‘, ‘chamchagiri‘, ‘chelas‘, ‘childishness’, ‘corrupt’, ‘coward’, ‘criminal’ and ‘crocodile tears’.
Besides words like ‘disgrace’, ‘donkey’, ‘drama’, ‘eyewash’, ‘fudge’, ‘hooliganism’, ‘hypocrisy’, ‘incompetent’, ‘mislead’, ‘lie’ and ‘untrue’ would also be prohibited for use in parliament henceforth.
Among some of the Hindi words listed as unparliamentary include ‘gaddar‘, ‘girgit‘, ‘goons’, ‘ghadiyali ansu‘, ‘apmaan‘, ‘asatya‘, ‘ahankaar‘, ‘corrupt’, ‘kala din‘, ‘kala bazaari‘ and ‘khareed farokht‘.
Besides, words like ‘danga‘, ‘dalal‘, ‘daadagiri‘, ‘dohra charitra‘, ‘bechara‘, ‘bobcut’, ‘lollypop’, ‘vishwasghat‘, ‘samvedanheen‘, ‘foolish’, ‘pitthu‘, ‘behri sarkar‘ and ‘sexual harassment’ would be considered as unparliamentary and would not be included as part of record.
How was the list compiled?
The Lok Sabha Secretariat compiled words and expressions declared unparliamentary from time to time by the Chair in different legislative bodies in in the country as well as in Commonwealth Parliaments.
The compilation contains references to words and expressions declared unparliamentary in Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha and state legislatures in India during 2021, besides those disallowed in some of the Commonwealth Parliaments in 2020.
The list states that some of the keywords may not appear unparliamentary unless read in conjunction with the other expressions spoken during the parliamentary proceedings.
The list of expressions also includes any aspersions made against the chair in both the houses in either English or Hindi, which shall be considered as unparliamentary and are expunged from the records of Parliament.
Who declares the words unparliamentary?
The Rajya Sabha Chairman and the Lok Sabha Speaker will have the last word in expunging words and expressions.
The Rajya Sabha chairman or the Lok Sabha speaker vets the words spoken in the house during the session and unparliamentary words are expunged. Such words do not form part of the Parliament records of both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.
What happens when an MP uses unparliamentary language?
First, it is important to understand that action cannot be initiated against any MP in any court for their unparliamentary language.
Article 105(2) of the Constitution states that “no Member of Parliament shall be liable to any proceedings in any court in respect of anything said or any vote given by him in Parliament or any committee thereof.”
However, that does not mean that they have free reign.
Such unparliamentary from MPs can be expunged or deleted from the official record under Rule 380 (“Expunction”) of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in Lok Sabha.
It states: “If the Speaker is of opinion that words have been used in debate which are defamatory or indecent or unparliamentary or undignified, the Speaker may, while exercising discretion order that such words be expunged from the proceedings of the House.”
“The portion of the proceedings of the House so expunged shall be marked by asterisks and an explanatory footnote shall be inserted in the proceedings as follows: ‘Expunged as ordered by the Chair’,” the rule says.
History behind such a custom
This isn’t remotely new.
As we know, the Indian Parliament lifted heavily from its British counterpart when it came to its rules.
As per News18, Britain’s Parliament has recorded ‘expunging’ of words or expressions during its proceedings as early as 1604.
“An entry in the Commons journal from 1604 is often referred to as the first time the House took action. The House reviewed an ill-tempered debate the previous day on the subject of purveyance, and in particular, a speech of the eminent lawyer Lawrence Hyde. It was agreed ‘for a Rule of the House; Qui digreditur a materia ad personam [whoever descends from talking about the subject to talking about persons], Mr. Speaker ought to suppress,’ according to British historian Paul Seaward.
Seaward further stated that this was likely the first time such an occurrence was documented.
He explains that there exist two lengthy descriptions of the operation of the House of Commons from the sixteenth century, both of which implied that the House spontaneously enforced a collective sense of proper behaviour, though neither implied that the Speaker was empowered to intervene.
Opposition cries foul
The Congress and Trinamool Congress on Thursday slammed the “gag order” on usage of certain words in Parliament, claiming all terms used by the Opposition to describe the Modi dispensation will now to be considered “unparliamentary”.
Slamming the move, Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said, “All words used by the Opposition to describe the reality of Modi Sarkar now to be considered ‘unparliamentary’. What next Vishguru”.
Congress general secretary Randeep Surjewala also said, “Saheb knows his qualities very well”.
He also shared a copy of the news report.
The Congress said in a tweet in Hindi, “Who will be afraid of ‘Jumlajeevi’ – who has given jumlas. Who will be afraid of the word ‘Jaichand’ – who has betrayed the country. These words are not being banned in Parliament, the fear of PM Modi is coming out.”
Trinamool Congress leader Derek O’Brien said, “Session begins in a few days. GAG ORDER ISSUED ON MPs.” “Now, we will not be allowed to use these basic words while delivering a speech in #Parliament : Ashamed. Abused. Betrayed. Corrupt. Hypocrisy. Incompetent. I will use all these words. Suspend me. Fighting for democracy,” the TMC leader said.
Another Congress spokesperson Jaiveer Shergill said on Twitter, “Latest List of ‘banned words’ in Parliament is BJP Govt desperate attempt to control criticism & hard hitting truth.” “BJP Government wants Parliament to turn into ‘yes man’ chamber and ‘cheerleading stadium’ rather than house of accountability and answerability,” he also said.
Gujarat Congress’ working president Jignesh Mevani tweeted, “Ashamed, abused, betrayed, corrupt, drama, hypocrisy, incompetent jumlajeevi, baal buddhi, Covid spreader, dohra charitra, nikamma, nautanki, dhindora peetna, behri sarkar are among the many words that will now be called unparliamentary. What’s happening in the country?”
Govt dismisses Opposition outrage
As per NDTV, government sources issued the following statement. “Today, the Opposition has created a lot of hue and cry about the compilation of unparliamentary words in the parliament. But what is amusing is that they have tried to create a storm without knowing the facts. This list is brought out every year,” it said.
“The list is not a new suggestion, but merely a compilation of words already expunged in Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha or state legislatures. It also contains a list of words considered unparliamentary in parliaments of Commonwealth countries,” it added.
“Most of these words were considered unparliamentary even during the UPA government. The booklet is mere compilation of the words, not suggestions or order,” the statement said, listing a few terms that were taken off in Opposition-ruled states and other countries.
As per The Telegraph, the statement continued, “It also contains a list of words considered unparliamentary in parliaments of Commonwealth countries. For instance, the word “abused” was considered unparliamentary in Australia’s House of Representatives. The word “childishness” was considered unparliamentary in Quebec’s National Assembly. ‘Lollipops in the budget’ was expunged from the Punjab Assembly. The Punjab Assembly also expunged the phrase ‘you have reached here telling a lie’.
Sources further pointed to the words “ant-shant, aksham”, which was expunged from the Chhattisgarh Assembly.
“The words ‘anpadh, anargal’ were expunged from the Rajasthan Assembly. Most of these words were considered unparliamentary even during the UPA government. The booklet is a mere compilation of the words, not suggestions or order,” said government sources.
With inputs from agencies
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