Bharatiya Janata Party MP Anurag Thakur on Thursday accused a Trinamool Congress parliamentarian of using an e-cigarette inside the Lok Sabha, prompting a brief commotion during Question Hour.
Raising the issue on the floor of the House, Thakur sought clarification from Speaker Om Birla on whether e-cigarettes were permitted in Parliament. When Birla confirmed they were not, Thakur alleged that a Trinamool MP, whom he did not identify, had been “smoking e-cigarettes in the House for the past several days”.
“E-cigarettes are banned across the country… yet you have allowed them in the House? Trinamool MPs have been sitting and smoking them for several days… e-cigarettes are being smoked in the House. Please investigate this immediately,” Thakur said. His remarks prompted several BJP MPs to rise and echo the complaint, resulting in a brief uproar amid already frequent disruptions seen in Parliament.
Speaker Om Birla called for restraint and promised action if the claim was verified. “We must adhere to parliamentary traditions and rules. If such matters come to my attention, I will act,” he assured members. Thakur and other BJP MPs are expected to submit a written complaint to support their allegation.
E-cigarettes, or vapes, are electronic devices that heat a liquid, typically containing nicotine and flavouring, into an aerosol inhaled by the user. These devices were completely banned in India under the Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes Act, 2019, which prohibits their manufacture, import, sale, distribution, storage and advertisement. Even possession is unlawful.
Despite the prohibition, enforcement challenges persist across the country, and e-cigarettes continue to surface in illegal markets. In 2023, the Union government urged states to step up monitoring after reports emerged of e-cigarettes being sold at grocery shops and stationery stores near schools and colleges.
Smoking in public spaces, including inside the Parliament complex, is also prohibited. The Parliament Rule Book explicitly states that smoking is “strictly forbidden”. The closure of a designated smoking room inside Parliament in 2015 had similarly triggered protests from MPs across party lines.
