Parliament Cigarette Row: Trinamool MP defends smoking, Blames BJP Instead

Trinamool Congress MP Saugata Roy has triggered a political storm after being filmed smoking at the Makar Dwar entrance of the Parliament complex. Union ministers Gajendra Singh Shekhawat and Giriraj Singh confronted him on the spot, accusing him of flouting public-health rules. Roy brushed off the charge, insisting that the prohibition applies only inside the House and that the area outside is an open space where "there is no restriction". Rather than addressing the breach, Roy tried to redirect the conversation to Delhi's pollution levels, saying that his smoking "makes no difference" compared to what he called the government's failure to control toxic air. The episode landed in the Lok Sabha soon after, when BJP MP Anurag Thakur raised it as a matter of propriety. The pushback has been sharp, with ruling dispensation saying the conduct erodes the dignity of Parliament.