New Delhi, Dec 12 : Former Union Minister and senior BJP MP Anurag Singh Thakur has written to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, alleging that a Trinamool Congress MP used an e-cigarette inside the Lok Sabha chamber a move he termed a serious breach of Parliamentary rules and national law.
In his letter, Thakur said the AITC member was seen using the device during the House proceedings, an incident reportedly witnessed by several MPs. He added that he had already flagged the violation to the Chair during Question Hour on Thursday.
Thakur stressed that the act directly violates the Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes Act, 2019, which bans the manufacture, sale, distribution, storage, and use of e-cigarettes across India. He also highlighted that smoking devices, including electronic nicotine delivery systems, have been prohibited inside Parliament since 2008 under the COTPA Act, 2003, and Lok Sabha Secretariat rules.
Calling the incident “a cognisable offence” and “a breach of the dignity and decorum of Parliament,” Thakur said the open use of a banned device inside the Lok Sabha sends a “dangerous message to the youth” at a time when the government is pushing strong anti-tobacco and anti-nicotine measures.
He urged the Speaker to take immediate cognisance, order an inquiry through an appropriate House committee, and initiate disciplinary action against the MP concerned.
The issue surfaced during Question Hour when Thakur publicly asked whether e-cigarettes were allowed in the Lok Sabha. After Speaker Birla replied “no,” the BJP MP alleged that a TMC leader had been “constantly using an e-cigarette in the House for the past several days.” Birla said he would take action once a written complaint was received.