Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai

Mumbai, Nov 28: Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Friday declared that his party’s MPs will chant ‘Vande Mataram’ loudly in Parliament, challenging the BJP to “throw them out of the House” if it dares. His remarks came after the Rajya Sabha secretariat recently reminded members not to use slogans like ‘Vande Mataram’ and ‘Jai Hind’ inside or outside the House, calling it a breach of parliamentary etiquette.

Addressing a press conference here, Thackeray said the BJP had once insisted that those who wish to live in this country must say ‘Vande Mataram’, but was now objecting to the very slogan it once championed. He sarcastically asked if the official who issued the latest instruction from the Rajya Sabha secretariat would now be “sent to Pakistan,” and questioned whether “Macaulay’s progeny” had infiltrated the BJP.

Thackeray asserted that all Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs will chant ‘Vande Mataram’ in Parliament, adding that the BJP should show the courage to expel them if it objects. The advisory against chanting slogans is part of the ‘Handbook for Members of Rajya Sabha’, issued ahead of the parliamentary session beginning December 1. Secretariat sources clarified that this is not a new directive, noting that a similar circular had been issued during the UPA government in November 2005.