With a controversy raging over a list of unparliamentary words issued by the Lok Sabha Secretariat, Speaker Om Birla has clarified that no word has been banned from use by members in the House.
At a press conference called especially to offer a clarification on the issue, Birla said the words and phrases in the list brought out by the Lok Sabha Secretariat are merely those which were expunged following objections made by members or based on the presiding officer's own judgment. He said there was no blanket ban on use of such words or phrases.
"The practice of bringing out words deemed unparliamentary has been going on since 1954. Since 2010, it has been done annually. However, these words are not banned. Whether they will be expunged if used in the future will depend on the context," he said.
In response to a question on why a commonly used phrase such as "crocodile tears" was in the list, Birla said that in fact it had been used by a member of the ruling side and expunged after the opposition had objected to its use.
"What is important is the context in which the word is used. There is no ban on these words being used in the future," he said.
Birla also said that the allegation that the government had banned words that are used to criticise it was unfounded. "The government never dictates anything to the Lok Sabha. The government cannot ban the use of any words. The right of freedom of expression of every member is safe," he said.
He pointed out that while the list was brought out in the form of a printed booklet, now it has been put on the internet to save paper.