June 25th 2024.
On the second day of the first session of the 18th Lok Sabha, an array of prominent personalities took oath, including Rahul Gandhi, Akhilesh Yadav, Dimple Yadav, Hema Malini, Asaduddin Owaisi, and Kanimozhi Karunanidhi. A total of 535 members completed the process on Monday and Tuesday, with seven remaining to be sworn in. These seven MPs include Shatrughan Sinha, Deepak Adhikari, Sheikh Nurul Islam, Afzal Ansari, and Independents Amritpal Singh and Sheikh Abdul Rashid, who are currently in jail.
After taking oath, many of the MPs raised spirited slogans of "Jai Hind," "Jai Maharashtra," "Jai Bheem," and "Jai Shivaji." Among them was BJP leader Om Birla, who has been nominated for the post of speaker. As he came to take his oath, he was warmly greeted by Radha Mohan Singh, who was in the chair at the time. Birla, who has been representing the Kota constituency since 2014, is well-respected among his peers.
During the ceremony, the pro-tem speaker reminded members to stick to the prescribed oath and read only what was written on the paper they were given. Several opposition MPs took their oath while holding a copy of the Constitution, including Gandhi, who added "Jai Hind, Jai Samvidhan" to his oath. After greeting the chair, he even shook hands with a House official before stepping down from the podium.
Chandrashekhar, an MP from Uttar Pradesh's Nagina for Azad Samaj Party, had a longer list of slogans at the end of his oath. He proudly exclaimed "Jai Bhim, Jai Bharat, Jai Samvidhan, Jai Mandal, Jai Johar, Jai Jawan, Jai Kisan," while holding a copy of the Constitution. After taking oath, Supriya Sule touched Pro-tem Speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab's feet and sought blessings from Union Minister Nitin Gadkari.
The Samajwadi Party's Dimple Yadav, Akshay Yadav, Rambhual Nishad, Utkarsh Verma, and Naresh Uttam Patel, among others, hailed socialism, the party's founder Mulayam Singh Yadav, and Akhilesh. However, BJP's Chhatra Pal Singh Gangwar from Bareilly sparked controversy when he raised a slogan in support of a "Hindu Rashtra," which was met with objections from the opposition benches.
Congress MP Sasikant Senthil from Tamil Nadu's Thiruvallur urged to "stop the shameful atrocities against minorities, dalits, and adivasis" after taking his oath. The majority of the MPs sworn in during the first hour were from Maharashtra and took their oaths in Marathi. A few chose to take their oaths in English and Hindi.
The first MP to take oath on Tuesday was Gowaal Kagada Padavi, a Congress member elected from Nandurbar constituency in Maharashtra. He was followed by the Congress' Dhule MP Shobha Dinesh Bachhav and the BJP's Smita Uday Wagh from Jalgaon. The House was graced by the presence of Union ministers Nitin Gadkari, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, and Pralhad Joshi, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, DMK's TR Baalu, TMC's Mahua Moitra, and Shiromani Akali Dal's Harsimrat Kaur Badal.
Congress MP from Inner Manipur, Angomcha Bimol Akoijam, took oath in Manipuri while holding a copy of the Constitution. After being sworn in, he shook hands with Gandhi. When the name of Alfred S Arthur, the Congress' Outer Manipur MP, was called to take his oath, Gandhi stood up and shook hands with him. After taking his oath in English, Arthur said, "Manipur mei nyay dilaye, desh bachaiye," which translates to "Bring justice to Manipur, save the country." This was met with cheers and slogans of "Manipur, Manipur" by Congress members.
Most MPs from Odisha took their oaths in Odia, with Malvika Devi and Pradeep Kumar Panigrahy being the only exceptions who chose to take their oaths in English. Punjabi MPs from Punjab took their oaths in Punjabi, with many from Congress and AAP holding copies of the Constitution. AIMIM leader Owaisi, who has been elected from the Hyderabad seat for his fifth term, took oath in Urdu and recited a prayer beforehand. After his oath, he hailed his state Telangana and BR Ambedkar, apart from raising the AIMIM's slogan for Muslims. However, his mention of a conflict-hit West Asian region sparked an uproar from the treasury benches and was struck off the record by the chair.
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