With the formation of the 18th Lok Sabha, the Sengol is once again in the news. President Draupadi Murmu was welcomed with the Sengol as soon as she reached the Parliament gate to address the joint session. The Sengol was installed in the new Parliament House during its inauguration. As soon as the President reached the Parliament House gate on Thursday after the formation of the 18th Lok Sabha, Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla were present to welcome her.
As soon as the President reached the Parliament House, a person arrived with a sangol. Then he kept walking ahead of the President with the sangol. He took the President to his seat and then placed the sangol at its designated place. The person who welcomed the President with the sangol was an employee of the Lok Sabha Secretariat.
Symbolism of the Sengol Scepter
Sengol is considered a symbol of the scepter. It was installed in the House at the time of inauguration of the new Parliament building. A day earlier, Samajwadi Party MP RK Chaudhary had demanded the removal of Sengol from the House. He had said that this is a democracy and Sengol is a symbol of monarchy in it. He had advised to remove Sengol and place a copy of the Constitution in its place.
Chowdhary had said that the previous BJP government had installed Sengol near the Speaker’s chair. He says that the literal meaning of Sengol is the scepter i.e. the king’s stick. Therefore, it should be removed. It is said about Sengol that it has come from the Tamil word Semmai.
Actually, Sengol has been included in the welcoming protocol of the President. Earlier on February 1, a senior marshal of Lok Sabha, Rajiv Sharma, dressed in traditional attire, held the Sengol and welcomed the President.
Tags: parliament house, President of India
FIRST PUBLISHED : June 27, 2024, 12:53 IST