Tripura BJP MLA caught watching porn in assembly, opposition demands action
Agartala, Mar 30: BJP MLA Jadab Lal Nath was allegedly caught watching pornography on his mobile phone in the Tripura assembly, prompting the opposition on Thursday to demand strong action against him.
The incident happened when proceedings were underway in the assembly on the last day of the Budget session on Wednesday, and a video clip of it went viral on social media.
Nath, the MLA of Bagbassa constituency in North Tripura district, claimed obscene videos started appearing on his phone as he received a call.
"I know well that using mobile phones is prohibited in the House. As repeated calls were coming, I picked up a call, and then obscene videos started appearing on my phone. Anyways, I then closed it," he told PTI.
He said he has spoken to state BJP president Rajib Bhattacharya on the matter who told him to "wait".
The Congress said it was a shameful incident, and Nath should be punished for it.
"This incident has tarnished the image of all MLAs. This man should be appropriately punished. Use of mobile phones is completely prohibited in the assembly, how could he watch pornography?" state Congress president Birajit Sinha said.
Leader of opposition Animesh Debbarma also demanded action against Nath.
"The speaker should take stern action against such an act," he told reporters.
Speaker Biswabandhu Sen said he is yet to receive a complaint over the issue.
"I have not received any complaint. I cannot take action on the basis of a social media post. If any complaint is lodged, I will initiate an investigation and take appropriate action," he said.
In 2012, three BJP ministers of Karnataka -- Lakshman Savdi, CC Patil and Krishna Palemar -- were allegedly caught watching porn in the assembly.
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41 lakh illicit liquor seized, 1.84 lakh arrested in major drive: K'taka Minister tells Assembly
Belagavi (Karnataka) (PTI): The Karnataka Excise Department has conducted a statewide crackdown on illegal liquor trade over the last two years, resulting in arrests and seizures of alcohol, Karnataka Excise Minister R B Timmapur said on Tuesday.
As many as 1,09,017 people were arrested, and seizures included 13.66 lakh litres of liquor and 27.19 lakh litres of beer, he said in a written reply to a starred question by Harihar BJP MLA B P Harish in the Karnataka Assembly.
The Minister said the enforcement drive covered the financial year 2023–24, 2024–25 up to June, and 2025–26 from July to October, targeting unauthorised liquor manufacture, storage, sale and transportation across the State.
"During this period, statewide enforcement drives resulted in a total of 1,84,570 raids against illegal liquor sales,” Timmapur said.
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He noted that 9,179 non-bailable cases and 91,968 bailable and compoundable cases under Section 15(A) of the Karnataka Excise Act, 1965, were registered during the same period.
According to him, there have been no reports indicating that students have become addicted to alcohol due to illegal liquor sales.
The sale of alcohol to minors is strictly prohibited under the Karnataka Excise Act, 1965, and the department has issued periodic instructions to initiate legal action against violators, with strict enforcement and investigation measures in place, the Minister said.
Excise officials are carrying out regular road and night patrols, collecting intelligence, monitoring habitual offenders and conducting raids to identify illicit distillation units, unauthorised liquor outlets and spurious liquor manufacturing centres, he said, adding the department is also enforcing the law to prevent the production, storage, sale and transport of spurious, non-duty-paid and unauthorised liquor.
Regular patrols are being conducted on national and state highways, with suspicious vehicles being subjected to checks.
At the district level, standing committee meetings are held under the chairmanship of Deputy Commissioners, and joint operations are carried out with the police and forest departments to curb excise-related offences.
The department is also conducting awareness programmes through Gram Sabhas and in schools and colleges to educate the public and students about the physical, mental and social health hazards associated with alcohol addiction and substance abuse, Timmapur added.
