A newly elected Samajwadi Party MP has demanded that the sengol Prime Minister Narendra Modi installed in the Lok Sabha with much pageantry be replaced with a “replica of the Constitution”, arguing a symbol of “monarchy” has no place in a democracy.

“The Constitution is the symbol of democracy while the sengol is the symbol of monarchy. Our Parliament is a temple of democracy, not a place of royalty,”
R.K. Chaudhary, a Dalit elected from Mohanlalganj in Uttar Pradesh, wrote to pro-tem Speaker Bhartruhari Mahtab after taking the oath last Tuesday.

“I request the sengol be removed and replaced by a large replica of the Constitution.”

The BJP has responded by hailing the sengol as a symbol of “righteousness” and accusing the Samajwadi Party and the INDIA bloc of disrespecting India’s culture and history.

An unfazed Chaudhary — a member of the Pasi community of traditional toddy tappers — stood his ground.

“’Sengol’ is a Tamil word. Translated into Hindi, it means ‘raaj-dand’ or ‘raja ka danda’. Now the question is, will this country be run by the Constitution or the danda?” he said on Thursday, talking to reporters.

“The Constitution is the symbol of India’s democracy, and so the sengol installed by the BJP government beside the Speaker’s chair should be removed to save the Constitution.”

A sengol is an ancient Tamil royal sceptre. Modi had installed a newly made sengol in the new Parliament building in May last year in a ceremony replete with Tamil and Hindu symbolism.

While Samajwadi president Akhilesh Yadav sidestepped the issue raised by Chaudhary, and senior INDIA bloc leaders remained silent, his demand can embarrass the BJP as it grapples with Opposition allegations of savaging the Constitution in letter and spirit.

On Thursday, Uttar Pradesh chief minister Yogi Adityanath hit back at Chaudhary’s demand.

“The Samajwadi Party has no respect for Indian history or culture. The remarks of their top leaders on the ‘sengol’ are condemnable and indicate their ignorance. It also shows the INDI alliance’s hatred for Tamil culture in particular,” he postedin Hindi on X.

Akhilesh was evasive when asked whether he supported or opposed his party MP’s demand.

“Our MP raised the issue because the Prime Minister had bowed his head during its (sengol’s) installation in the new Parliament. But he forgot to do this while taking the oath. Maybe our MP was reminding him about it,” Akhilesh told reporters outside Parliament.

Many individual MPs backed Chaudhary, a long-time social activist who had worked with the late Bahujan Samaj Party founder Kanshi Ram and was a minister in an erstwhile BSP government in Lucknow.

“We have been very clear that the sengol symbolises kingship and the kingdom era is over. We should celebrate the people’s democracy and the Constitution,” Manickam Tagore, senior Congress MP from Tamil Nadu, told NDTV.

“Even if the sengol is not removed, a replica of the Constitution should be placed in the House,” AAP Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh said.

“Whoever has demanded this, I welcome it. The sengol should be sent to a museum. This is not a symbol of democracy but that of monarchy,” RJD member Misa Bharti said.

Congress Rajya Sabha member Renuka Chowdhury told reporters: “The SP MP’s demand is not unjustified. The BJP, without taking the view of others, established the sengol in Parliament; there was no consensus on this issue. Parliament is run through consensus.”