“Will the government save me? I need protection, there is a threat to my life” – Tamil Nadu lawmaker Sasikala Pushpa wept as she made the stunning declaration in Parliament on Monday, moments before her AIADMK announced that she had been sacked for embarrassing the party.
Ms Pushpa probably anticipated punishment after her brawl with an MP of the rival DMK, Trichy Siva, at the Delhi airport. This resulted in both being thrown out of the flight on an early Saturday. “I am being compelled to resign from a parliamentary post,” she complained in the Rajya Sabha.
Ms Pushpa has been sacked for “bringing great disrepute to the party,” said Jayalalithaa, the chief minister of Tamil Nadu.
Ms Pushpa was on her feet this morning when the day’s business began in the Rajya Sabha. “If a leader can slap an MP, anything can happen. I need the government’s protection. I am not safe in Tamil Nadu,” she said, taking no names in particular.
When the Deputy Chairman asked the member to allow proceedings, the opposition Congress jumped to her support and spoke a few words. “A member wants to say something. Tomorrow something will happen to anyone in the house. She has not been allowed to speak,” said Ghulam Nabi Azad.
Union Minister Venkaiah Naidu said: “If someone has a feedback about their security, it’s best for them to write to the chairman.”
Trying to end the row, Deputy Speaker PJ Kurien said: “We will do the needful. I can assure on behalf of the honourable chairman (vice president Hamid Ansari), we will take care of this.”