The remarks of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on BK Hariprasad, the UPA candidate for the post of deputy chairman of the Rajya Sabha, were expunged from Parliamentary records in what is perhaps the first instance of such a decision.
Modi had on 9 August commented on Hariprasad’s loss using wordplay of his name which offended the Congress MP. The comment was made in the Rajya Sabha after Hariprasad’s loss to NDA candidate Harivansh.
“The Prime Minister belittled the dignity of the chair and brought down the dignity of the House,” Hariprasad said.
The Rajya Sabha Secretariat has reportedly confirmed that the remarks of the PM were expunged.
The PM, who had walked in the Rajya Sabha immediately after the voting, congratulated Harivansh Narayan Singh, a Janata Dal (United) MP, for his victory.
“PM Narendra Modi also congratulated Shri BK Hariprasad for being part of the election for deputy chairperson of the Rajya Sabha,” read a Press Information Bureau (PIB) release.
This is not the first time that the PM’s remarks in Parliament faced the threat of removal from records.
In February 2017, AAP MP Bhagwant Mann had urged the Speaker to expunge PM Modi’s remarks about him in the Lok Sabha.