On September 24, Danish Ali, a member of parliament for the Samajwadi Party, urged a formal investigation and remedial action in response to a recent argumentative debate in the Lok Sabha. The episode, which took place on September 21, 2023, during a discussion on the accomplishment of India’s Chandrayaan Mission, has sparked questions about the decorum of parliamentary processes and the behaviour of elected lawmakers.
In the wake of the incident, Danish Ali voiced his concerns and sought redress. He specifically appealed to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, stating, “I request the (Lok Sabha) speaker that this should be inquired because this is one more matter of breach of privilege. I demand action be taken against Nishikant Dubey for what he has written.”
Ali made mention to Nishikant Dubey in a letter the BJP lawmaker addressed to the speaker of the Lok Sabha in response to some unsavoury comments made during the debate. In the letter, Dubey voiced his displeasure with Danish Ali’s disparaging remarks regarding Prime Minister Narendra Modi and highlighted concerns about the preservation of parliamentary decorum.
Danish Ali took part in what he called a “running commentary” during the argument of the incident at hand. Ali interrupted other members frequently and said, neech ko neech nahi kahenge to kya kahenge” (What else can we call lowly people if not lowly), in reference to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Despite not using a microphone, this remark could be heard by everyone in the room.
In his letter to the Lok Sabha Speaker, Nishikant Dubey emphasised the value of safeguarding Parliament’s honour and sustaining its traditional customs of civil discourse. Dubey demanded an investigation into the distasteful comments made during the conversation.
Danish Ali contested the veracity of the accusations in response to Dubey’s letter and the requests for an investigation that followed. He demanded proof to back up Dubey’s claims and asked clarification on whether all BJP MPs were there when the incident occurred.
“This indicates that they did not show up to back the PM… In the house, they verbally lynched me. They are currently attempting to lynch me outdoors,” claimed Danish Ali.
