The world inside the Parliament of India is a kaleidoscope of extreme rivalries, staunch hostility and never-ending friendships, friendly and sometimes not-so-friendly constitutional debates and oftentimes the source of serious controversies nowadays. From the recital of religious slogans by eminent Parliamentarians while reading out the needs and demands of their respective constituencies to the recent suspension of Members of the Parliaments over the display of seriously unruly behaviour in spite of the repeated warnings from the Chair of the House, the Parliament of India, a temple of that houses the Constitution of India and is built to safeguard the moral and Constitutional values of the country on, which it has been built upon, has seen every kind of unconstitutional and unparliamentarily tailored behaviour that has garnered also of flak from other members and the common people alike. However, this one incident that took place inside the Parliament of India has not just shocked the members of the parliament but has also drawn a lot of flak from the common public and the media alike.

The Kiss That Won Anger and Flak over Hearts

Recently, the Member of Parliament from Amethi in Uttar Pradesh and Wayanad in Kerala, Rahul Gandhi, shocked the entire house of legislation on Wednesday, the 9^th of August in this year, with a gesture that left his other colleagues in the Parliament fuming over this action. Monday, the 7^th of August, marked a momentous day for the Member of the Parliament as it was after almost several months that he could once again resume his daily job as an MP after his membership was put on hold by the Parliament as well as the Supreme Court of India because of his allegedly racist remarks on the Gujarati surname, ‘Modi’, that generally belongs to people from the scheduled castes group in the Indian state of Gujarat. However, it seems that Rahul Gandhi wants himself to be seen as the Karan Johar (KJo) of Indian politics as he, possibly, has made up his mind to continue living a life that will be filled with unwanted controversies.

During an ongoing session in the Parliament, after he had finished giving his part of the speech, he decided to walk out of the House and attend a political gathering in Rajasthan. It was while he was leaving the House that he decided to respond to some comments aimed at him by throwing a flying kiss at his female colleagues. Though Rahul Gandhi tried to defend himself by claiming that his act was not just aimed at the female colleagues of the Parliament but towards every member of the opposition to remind them that he is not afraid of getting defeated, this excuse has not been easily accepted by other MPs, especially, the female members of the ruling party, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Unfortunately, this seemingly indecent act in the House of Legislation has drawn in a lot of flak and criticism from everywhere in the country as the action has been interpreted as something highly obscene and disrespectful towards the women, Parliament and the very Constitutional spirit of the country.

Booing and Jeering Prompted a Flying Kiss

As has been reported by several national and regional media alike that Rahul Gandhi had just finished criticizing the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led Narendra Modi government at the centre over his silence regarding the issue of ethical violence that has been wrecking Manipur for over quite some period now. After that, he decided to leave the House to attend a pre-organized political rally in the state of Rajasthan. While leaving the Parliament with a pack of files, he accidentally dropped a few on the ground and gestured to pick those up from the ground. This innocent act on his side invited some unnecessary mocking and laughter from the side of his rival bench, to, which he turned around and decided to give a reply by throwing a flying kiss at those members, who were booing and jeering at him. Unfortunately, this seemingly innocent act cost him much as this was soon flagged red and deemed extremely unethical and inappropriate within the Parliament.

Ruling Party Female MPs Demand Severe Punishment

Speaking in Parliament after his departure, the Union minister for the development and welfare of women and children, Smriti Irani, referred to this act as ‘misogynistic’ and unconstitutional without naming the offender. “The one who was given the chance to speak before I displayed indecency before leaving. It is only a misogynistic man who can give a flying kiss to a Parliament which seats female members of Parliament. Such an instance was never witnessed before. This shows what he thinks of women. This is obscene.” She and several other female members of parliament from the union government voiced their extreme disapproval of this gesture by even going to the extent of calling this act of disrespecting women a part of his family culture. “The person who spoke before me… an indecent gesture was made… only a misogynistic man can give a flying kiss to Parliament which seats female Members of Parliament… such indecent act has not been witnessed by the House ever before. The entire has seen the culture of the (Gandhi) family,” was told by a visibly fuming Smriti Irani over the issue.
“Blowing a flying kiss towards Smriti Irani and all women members, he went away”. “This is total misbehaviour of the member. This is inappropriate and indecent behaviour of a member,” said Shobha Karandlaje, the Union Minister of State for Agriculture & Farmers’ Welfare in a statement before the media after the session of the Parliament got over.

Moreover, Smriti Irani has slammed Rahul Gandhi for saying that India has been murdered in Manipur and calling him out for hurting the spirit of unity and brotherhood that has been existing in India for several decades. “This is the first time that someone talked about the murder of India, and Congress leaders were thumping desks,” fumed the Union minister for the development and welfare of women and children.

This recent incident regarding the throwing of a flying kiss at the female members of the ruling party by Rahul Gandhi has ignited a passionate debate about the necessity to enforce political decorum in the Parliament of India. Though this act has been interpreted not as an act of insult to women but as an attempt to show his strength in the face of adversity and mockery, it cannot be denied that such an act was not just obscene but also a big sign of immaturity on the side of Rahul Gandhi going by the position and respect that he enjoys nationwide. Similarly, it has been quite indecent on the part of the members of the ruling party to have made fun of him just because of an unintentional and minor mistake of dropping a few files. It is essential to foster an environment of respectful political rivalry, where no personal attacks will be tolerated. On top of that, every member needs to ensure caution and sensitivity in their action as it could dampen the seriousness of the centre, where laws are made for the entire nation.