All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen chief Asaduddin Owaisi, known for his penchant for stirring controversies, sparked off yet another political row on Tuesday when he chanted ‘Jai Palestine’ while taking oath as a member of the 18th Lok Sabha.
The five-time MP from Hyderabad, who defeated BJP’s Madhavi Lata by 3.3 lakh votes in the recent elections, concluded his oath, saying: “Jai Bhim, Jai Meem, Jai Telangana, Jai Palestine”.
Owaisi took his oath in Urdu. According to reports, a section of BJP MPs had chanted ‘Jai Shri Ram’ as he went to take oath.
The AIMIM chief later defended his speech, saying there’s no provision in the Constitution that barred him from saying ‘Jai Palestine’
"Everyone is saying a lot of things...I just said ‘Jai Bhim, Jai Meem, Jai Telangana, Jai Palestine’… How it is against, show the provision in the Constitution…,” he said.
The BJP has, however, demanded action against the MP.
"We do not support or oppose any country, but it is not right to take the name of any country in the House,” Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said.