Several Opposition MPs demand removal of sengol from Parliament
Samajwadi Party leader RK Chaudhary on Wednesday called the sceptre a ‘symbol of monarchy’ and demanded that it be replaced with a copy of the Constitution.
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Several Opposition MPs have demanded the removal of the sengol – a traditional Tamil sceptre meant to symbolise a ruler’s adherence to dharmic principles – from Parliament.
The sengol was installed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the Lok Sabha chamber of the new Parliament building on May 28 last year. The Union government had claimed – citing dubious historical sources – that the sengol from Tamil Nadu symbolised the transfer of power from the British government to India.
Newly-inducted Samajwadi Party MP RK Chaudhary triggered the controversy on Wednesday after he called the sengol a “symbol of monarchy”.
Chaudhary, who was elected from Uttar Pradesh’s Mohanlalganj seat in the recent Lok Sabha election, demanded in a letter to newly-elected Speaker Om Birla that the sengol be replaced with a copy of the Constitution, NDTV reported.
“The Constitution is the symbol of democracy while the sengol is the symbol of monarchy,” the letter said, according to The Print. “Our Parliament is a temple of democracy, not a place of royalty. I request the sengol be removed and replaced by a large replica of the Constitution.”
On Wednesday, Chaudhary also told ANI that the sengol symbolised “raj dand” or “raja ka danda [the king’s stick]”. He said that India became independent after the British left. “Will the country be run by...
