NEW DELHI: BJP MP Anurag Thakur on Friday lodged a written complaint with Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, demanding action against a TMC lawmaker for allegedly smoking an e-cigarette inside the House.
Thakur had on Thursday raised the issue in Lok Sabha without naming the TMC MP.
In his complaint, the Hamirpur MP said, "A Member of Parliament belonging to the All India Trinamool Congress was seen openly using an electronic cigarette while seated in the House during the sittings."
The act was "clearly visible" to several members present in the House, he added.
Thakur said the "open use" of a banned substance and a prohibited device inside the 'sanctum sanctorum' of Indian democracy, the Lok Sabha chamber, constitutes not only a blatant violation of parliamentary decorum and discipline but also a cognisable offence under the laws enacted by the House.
Such conduct lowers the dignity of the House, sets an "extremely poor precedent", and sends a dangerous message to the youth of the country at a time when the government and Parliament have taken a firm stand against all forms of tobacco and nicotine products, he said.
"Therefore, earnestly request you to take immediate cognisance of this serious breach of rules and law; direct an inquiry into the incident through the appropriate committee or mechanism of the House," the BJP MP said in his letter to the Speaker.
He also urged Birla to initiate "appropriate disciplinary proceedings against the member concerned" as per the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in Lok Sabha. "Ensure that exemplary action is taken and is placed on record so that the sanctity and dignity of the House is upheld," the former Union minister requested the Speaker.
Birla had said in Lok Sabha on Thursday that if a written complaint is lodged on the matter, he will take action.
E-cigarettes were banned in the country a few years ago.