Boris Johnson quits as UK lawmaker after being told he will be sanctioned for misleading Parliament
London (PTI): Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has shocked the nation by abruptly quitting as a member of the parliament after being told by a parliamentary committee that he will be sanctioned for misleading Parliament over lockdown-breaking parties at Downing Street during his premiership.
Johnson, 58, had been under investigation by a parliamentary inquiry looking into whether he misled the House of Commons about lockdown-breaking parties in Downing Street during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Johnson's decision came on Friday as he received a confidential letter from the MP-led privileges Committee over the crucial matter.
Johnson accused the Commons inquiry of attempting to "drive me out".
In a statement he said: "They have still not produced a shred of evidence that I knowingly or recklessly misled the Commons."
Earlier on Friday, he received a copy of the yet-to-be-published report, which he claimed was "riddled with inaccuracies and reeks of prejudice".
In evidence given to the Privileges Committee in March, Johnson admitted misleading Parliament, but denied doing it on purpose.
He said social distancing had not been "perfect" at gatherings in Downing Street during COVID lockdowns.
But he said they were "essential" work events, which he claimed were allowed.
He insisted the guidelines - as he understood them - were followed at all times.
Announcing he would step down, Johnson issued a lengthy statement in which he said: "I did not lie, and I believe that in their hearts the committee know it."
"They know perfectly well that when I spoke in the Commons I was saying what I believed sincerely to be true and what I had been briefed to say, like any other minister," he said.
Johnson said he corrected the record as soon as possible, and claimed committee members "know that".
He said the "current prime minister and then occupant of the same building, Rishi Sunak" also believed they were "working lawfully together".
Johnson condemned the committee as a "kangaroo court", and claimed that its "purpose from the beginning has been to find me guilty, regardless of the facts".
Johnson's departure from political life comes less than four years after he won an 80-seat political majority and nine months after he stood down as prime minister after a police fine for breaking his own COVID rules.
In his statement, Johnson hit out at political enemies for targeting him after he was shown the privileges committee findings against him earlier this week.
"It is very sad to be leaving parliament at least for now but above all I am bewildered and appalled that I can be forced out, anti-democratically, by a committee chaired and managed, by [the Labour MP] Harriet Harman, with such egregious bias," he said.
The resignation will trigger an immediate by-election in Johnson's Uxbridge and South Ruislip constituency.
It was the second in a day for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak after Nadine Dorries resigned as MP for Mid Bedfordshire after her inclusion on Johnson's peerage list was blocked.
Labour sources view both the seats as winnable.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Centre spent Rs 76.13 lakh on print media ads for RSS centenary, reveals RTI
New Delhi: The Union Ministry of Culture allegedly spent Rs 76.13 lakh on print advertisements marking the 100-year celebrations of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), according to a Right to Information (RTI) reply.
The information was sought by RTI activist Ajay Basudev Bose, who filed an application seeking details on expenditure incurred by the ministry for advertisements commemorating the RSS centenary.
Bose shared a picture of the reply from the ministry on his official ‘X’ handle.
“It is informed that an amount of Rs 76,13,129 has been spent on advertisement given in various print media by the Ministry of Culture on the occasion of the completion of 100 years of RSS,” the government’s reply stated.
RTI reply shows Min of Culture Govt of India spent a Whopping Rs 76L,13K,129 on Advertisement in Print Media on occasion of 100 yrs of #RSS
— AJAY Basudev Bose (@AjayBos93388306) April 16, 2026
When Everyone knows RSS is Not Registered & Does not Pay any Tax is it justified to spend Tax Payers Money on such Private event??@RSSorg… pic.twitter.com/dW4IUtdNCg
Bose questioned the expenditure in the post X, “when Everyone knows RSS is Not Registered & Does not Pay any Tax is it justified to spend Tax Payers Money on such Private event??”
Reacting to the development, Karnataka’s IT-BT and Panchayat Raj Minister Priyank Kharge also criticised the spending.
In a post on X, he asked why public money was being used for what he described as a “private ideological project.”
"Modi Sarkar spent Rs 76,13,129 of public money on newspaper advertisements to celebrate 100 years of the RSS. Why is Government spending taxpayers money on an unregistered, non-tax-paying organisation to celebrate their centenary?," he added.
Why is public money being used to serve a private ideological project?
— Priyank Kharge / ಪ್ರಿಯಾಂಕ್ ಖರ್ಗೆ (@PriyankKharge) April 16, 2026
Modi Sarkar spent ₹76,13,129 of public money on newspaper advertisements to celebrate 100 years of the RSS.
Why is Government spending taxpayers money on an unregistered, non-tax-paying organisation to… pic.twitter.com/EoZ6Pim3IM
According to reports, the RSS describes itself as a volunteer-based organisation and has stated that it functions as a body of individuals rather than a registered entity.
Founded by Keshav Baliram Hedgewar in 1925, the organisation is marking its centenary year beginning from Vijaydashami in 2025, with the milestone observed on October 2.
