Su Venkatesan, MP from Madurai and State Secretary of the CPIM, has once again sparked controversy by mocking the Sengol, a scepter symbolizing Tamil culture, which was placed in the new parliament building by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 28 May 2023, as a symbol of righteousness and justice. Despite being aware of the true significance of the Sengol, the MP chose to ridicule Tamil culture solely to oppose the BJP in Parliament.
During the motion of thanks to the President in the 18th Lok Sabha, CPIM MP Su Venkatesan began by expressing gratitude to the voters and the people of Madurai, for their trust in him. Ironically, he won from Madurai – the seat of the Sangam age and the abode of Goddess Meenakshi.
Disagreeing with the motion of thanks, he pointed out the absence of any mention of Ayodhya in the President’s speech, unlike the previous session of the 17th Lok Sabha Prime Minister’s last speech extensively covered Ayodhya. Venkatesan said, “If we don’t vote for you, you will abandon Ayodhya and you will abandon God.”
Venkatesan then shifted his focus to critique the ‘Sengol,’ a royal scepter symbolizing righteousness, justice, and authority in Indian culture. He ridiculed its narrative by comparing it unfavorably with historical kings known for polygamy and opulent lifestyles in their women’s quarters. Even though, such associations had no relevance to the Sengol. He questioned the symbolism of bringing the Sengol into parliamentary proceedings, asking rhetorically about the historical oppression of women by kings who wielded it.
Venkatesan queried, “Do you know, how many hundreds of women were kept as slaves by each king who held this sengol? What are trying to say to the women of the country by bringing and keeping the sengol here? It is painful.”
Further in his speech, Venkatesan peddled lies claiming that statues of Gandhi and Ambedkar, originally positioned at the parliament’s entrance, had been relocated to a less prominent location, while figures like Chanakya, Savarkar, and the Sengol were prominently displayed inside.
Contradicting his earlier statements in Parliament, Venkatesan asserted that the electorate had voted for his party with a mandate to dismantle what the current administration supports and to champion neglected causes. Continuing his speech, he remarked, “The scepter embodies dual symbols of honor: one representing monarchy and the second is, as you know, symbolizing virtue—namely, honesty.”
He also made unsubstantiated claims about BJP leaders from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Odisha disparaging Tamil people.
Subscribe to our channels onTelegram, WhatsApp, and Instagram and get the best stories of the day delivered to you personally.