In a major political embarrassment to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, Karnataka Minister for Cooperation Laxman Savadi was caught watching pornography on his mobile phone while the Assembly was in session on Tuesday.
The footage showing Mr. Savadi watching the stuff was shot by TV cameramen perched behind in the elevated media gallery. Mr. Savadi was sitting in the front row of the House. Less than an hour after the session concluded, TV channels beamed the uncensored visuals, each claiming the footage to be “exclusive.”
The channels also showed Minister for Ecology, Environment and Ports J. Krishna Palemar as well as Women and Child Welfare Minister C.C. Patil peeping into Mr. Savadi's phone and gesturing mirthfully.
At a hurriedly convened press conference, Mr. Savadi said Mr. Palemar was showing him a video wherein a woman was gang-raped in a western country. “It looked like a blue film, but that was not what it was.”
The footage
One video showed Mr. Savadi hiding a small phone between his lap and the desk and watching a series of pornographic clips. Another showed Mr. Savadi flipping photographs of women on a bigger touch-screen phone. Mr. Palemar was seen peeping into the touch-screen phone.
One of the cameramen, who claimed to have shot the footage, told The Hindu: “Around 15 minutes before the session ended, another cameraman and I grew suspicious when [Mr.] Savadi turned and looked at the media gallery twice. When we zoomed in, we found him watching pornography.”
The cameraman said a discussion on the drought conditions was going on when the Ministers indulged in the exercise. Speaker K.G. Bopaiah said he had not seen the television footage. He would take action against the Ministers after studying the law and the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the Assembly.
Legislative Council Chairman D.H. Shankara Murthy, a senior RSS leader, said: “It is disgusting and shameless.”
Resignation sought
Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly Siddaramaiah and his counterpart in the Council Motamma condemned the behaviour of the Ministers and demanded their resignation.
Savadi's defence
PTI reports:
Mr. Savadi said the video clippings had women dancing and they were raped by four men.
“Palemar told me such things happen abroad in rave parties. Since the House was discussing the Malpe rave party, I watched it … Just watching it is not a crime.” Mr. Savadi ruled out resigning over the issue.
Keywords: Laxman Savadi, pornography, Karnataka Assembly
It is very
shameful to the karnataka govt
It is legal to watch Porn in India, but it is not right to watch it
during your office hours in the office as it would distract others or
may make some uncomfortable. They should be punished for this offense
and not for the act of watching porn.
So this is what they do everyday instead of fighting corruption and
bringing development to the country.
This clearly shows our politician's moral collapse decisively. The voters have been taken for granted and the shameful (shameful for us, not for them) part is "They don't care". They know they can come back to the party anytime because our memories are short lived. I won't be surprised if the same person gets elected next time.
bjp' moral policing at new hieghts , upholding indian culture what a pity..
Rigorous action, fair and fast judiciary only can help this country
It is not about what is crime and what is not, it is not about who is gaining votes and who is losing. it is about the moral values of each individual. Politics is not a joke, leadership is not a joke, we have to be accountable for each and every action we do. our institutions are lagging in developing moral values in the society.what ever we feel comfortable is not right. I am afraid of the future india.
Don't blame politicians alone. Politicians are from the same society to which we
belong. All those commenting here are the ones who are civilized and capable of
differentiating good from bad. But majority of Indians are not. Google report says
that maximum hits on the search engines for porn is from India ? There is no basis
for morality unless you believe that there will be a day of resurrection and every soul
will be accountable for his deeds. Shame on these politicians. If there are no
candidates worthy of your vote then do not vote at all. Zero votes will collapse the
system and make way for pious people to stand for elections - dirt like these
ministers will not even dare to file nomination.
Where is RSS,Ram Sena and Anumand Sena? Those moral polices are keeping mum over this. BJP is a paramount failure and it can, by no means, achieve it's dream of ruling the country. Saffron party has shown its true color and the worst part is that the CM and the BJP's Eswarappa seem to defend those (s)ex-ministers! Shame on BJP.
If an independent MLA shouts in the assembly Speaker says he will be forced out when BJP members commit unimaginable mistake he says inquiry will be conducted and let us wait for the report.
Really the Government has to take a very serious decision, so that nobody can repeat the same mistake again........ All the 3 has to be punished severely...........
All these elected politicians are rogues in real life. What better can anyone expect out of these goondas. What kind of punishment can be given for such offenders. Even if you put them in jail, they know to lead a royal life there inside and also they know their way out. They must be punished publicly and all their ill gotten belongings must be distributed amongst the needy. They should never be given any post or position or even a seat to contest any election. Dear voters, just keep in mind all these miscreants and do not cast your precious votes to such scoundrels. Do not keep any criteria like the Political party or caste or anything at all, while voting. Just give your votes to a good human being. If there are not any, which could always be true, just stay away from the elections.
Most of the BJP sub-groups are acting like moral police in hotels and public place. What will they say for this?
Karnataka getting bad name because of these bad Ministers. day by day our state name is getting worsened.don't know really how our people voted them. they don't have time to look after problems of our society, but they have time to watch these nonsense vedios that too in Assembly.KARNATAKA Got a very good name for corruption,mining activies in India !!. these corrupt politicians showing their real cunning faces now one after the other.
Its really shamefull incident.
Its disgusting to know that karnataka BJP govt. is filled with such cabinet ministers, firstly Renukachaya kissing a nurse who alleged the minister had raped her. Next comes Harthalu Halappa who raped his friend's wife in her house, Next comes Rave party excesses being initially supported its cause in the guise of cultural and tourism development name. Next came bolt from the blue, watching blue films inside assembly when discussions are taking place with regards to suffering people of draught hit karnataka regions, which includes Laxman Savadi constituency also, but the said minister enjoy watching blue films during the same. This BJP party claims they are for hindu culture ambassidors, but indulge in such collasal deplorable attitudes inside assembly, just imagine what sort of a character they are in there private life. They have brought disrepute to party once headed by stalwarts like Atulji and Advaniji, The whole of karnatka hangs its head under shame have elected such goons.
its complete disgusting to the future of our country .its a shameful job, it doesn't matter from which party these people belongs if these people will do like that then what will happen to common man . Punishment should be necessary to such people otherwise they will find themselves paramount and they will continue
Independence gave more liberty to the people especially to the
politicians .Hence our constitution should tight the restrictions
(Disciplinary Rules-conduct rules) on each and every act of
politicians,like on the government servants.
At the time of giving independence to the Indians itself
Mr.Winisten Churchill, the then British Prime Minister has commented
that it cannot be safeguarded at-least even 50 Years.
The BJP in Karnataka never fails to entertain the people of the state, albeit for all the wrong reasons. It is long since it lost the claim on the title it gave itself - the party with a difference. What was the need or the necessity to watch porn videos in a place where only the concerns of the state and people should matter. What is worse is that these politicians do not have the decency to admit their guilt and seek forgiveness. They feel that whatever they do is right. Shame on them and the people who elect such politicians. The state assembly may not be the sanctum sanctorum where the noble and divine souls gather, but it does have some significance. It is the place where people's concerns and the well being of the state should matter. The BJP has a long and arduous task cut out for itself, if it desires to be in the race for the next elections. Such type of politicians also reflects an electorate that needs to do some soul searching itself. The BJP may not be alone.
Yes it is indeed shameful to even think about it.But at the same time either it is congress or bjp,we cannot expect a 100% clean party.There are and will be some irresponsible stupid people i the pRTY.What is needed to be done is to clean those people with time.And atleast bjp is doing that here.
'Since the House was discussing the Malpe rave party, I watched it … " Well said sir. India should really feel proud of you and your answer! Sigh... disgusting.... and we believe and have entrusted the responsibility of buiding up our country in their hands!
To watch porn int he privacy of one's home is acceptable but to do so in the temple of a democratic institutions, namely the assembly during an important debate is disgusting & shameless. His reason of watching a rape news clipping is unacceptable. He is there to listen & grasp the debate and put forward his own points not to watch dirty news clippings on his Mobile set. This man should be punished at all cost to set an example for future behavior in the house. Kudos to the camera men who caught them red handed.
What a shameful incident. It is just because of us (the voters), who either don't give the vote or elect the wrong person. We should not give the vote to any party but to person individual. Some action must be taken against the minister as he is behaving irresponsibly.
Fantastic, these fellows are a shameless lot, be they from Congress, BJP or any party, what is not surprising is that BJP is just another political party which need not be taken seriously. Unless the voter changes his or her choice our elections will continue to produce such peverts.
This is disgusting. These ministers should be sacked forthwith. The BJP government in Karnataka is frequently in news for all wrong reasons.
Where is our country going with all these politicians! shame on the way he watched it in assembly and the way he replied. Shameless people!
When they were watching the clip, nothing serious discussuion was on, some farmer sucide issue or some thing like that was on. Jai Shri Ram
Whatever happened, this is not a news fit to be on the Front Page of The Hindu. Well, I know I'm not the editor here to decide all that but I was shocked to see this news making it to the Front Page. Especially when The Hindu is running the 'Stay Ahead of The Times' campaign. I wonder if the former Editor-in-Chief would approve of this.
This is a very fit case for recall of the Honourable member.His Dishonourable Act in office,unmindful of the sanctity of the Assembly or seriousness of the on-going discussions is shocking.
True colours of our politicians. Had they been serious in their work,
such things would not have happened. They deserved to be pelted with
eggs and tomatoes.
What a shame! yet Mr Savade is acting bold. When you cannot defend yourself then you accept with pride and say 'Yes I did it.' I have no problem whether he was watching pornography or not, the real issue is, he undermined the respect of the Legislative Assembly.
Watching it is not a crime like you said but where and when,definitely not in the Assembly and while important public related matters are being discussed - stupid. If I were the BJP president I would have kicked you out from the party membership by now leave alone got you stripped off the MLA and minister post.THIS IS A DAMAGE DONE TO THE IMAGE OF THE KARNATAKA ASSEMBLY,what will women voters in KARNATAKA think about BJP MLAs,go and ask your wife and sisters-They will tell you. RSS express it "shameless" but BJP particularly women like SUSHMA SWARAJ must spit on this fellow's face and (in Hindi)"JUTA MARKE NIKALO BAHAR" from BJP instead of loosing millions of votes from Women in Karnataka. The whole nation feels ashamed and sorry now.
Watching pictures on small screen is a strain to the eyes. The visions
of our far-seeing legislators must be preserved at all costs so that
they do their national and international studies better. Each of the
legislators must be provided with a desktop in the Assembly. This way
one needn't crane one's neck and screw one's eyes to watch the pics on
the mobile of another person sitting next.
Shameless and hard up Ministers. If you let criminals stand for elections you can not expect anything better. All politicians belong to this breed of hard up criminals who have collected a lot of black money to win elections. Corruption is just one of their crimes, encouraging and watching sleaze is another. These people must be sent to jail.
Shame, should be condemned and should be sent out of the house!
This minister is supposed to be the hope for the millions of people who have elected him as a MLA. He should have behaved in a more mature and responsible way.
Minister you can watch all this but at ur home not in the House/parliament. You are elected for this???
No need to wait for resignation. He needs to be fired stat. It is the state of mind that matters and not the legal issue.
The minister could have salvaged the situation by saying sorry straightaway. But no, he gives an explanation which wouldn't be seen even in a poor comedy scene! Because the house was going to discuss a rave party where is the need to see this stuff on his phone in the assembly? Why was he not paying attention to the issue of drought? He is talking as if he were polishing up his powerpoint presentation! Atrocious behavior! And why were they smiling during all this? Clearly he is lying. If the Kannada people have any self-respect and pride kick these animals into jail. He says watching it is not a crime. Actually it is. He is obviously ignorant of the law but then again what would one expect from such a degenerate? The BJP in Karnataka is beyond a joke - Yedyurappa, Gali Janardhan Reddy and now this! Kudos to the millions who voted them in!
What an excuse!! But Im sure he will get way scot free and possibly even get a higher position soon.
Wow. what a superb indian government. Because of these politicians only our country is devastating.....
Shame to constituency call back him.
What a lame excuse - the minister involved would have looked less of a fool if had learned the wisdom of silence. Then again, why does India elect politicians of this calibre? Pornography itself is not a crime in most countries but indulgence it, voyeuristic or otherwise, is a character failure - a BJP hallmark?
"Just watching it is not a crime" Mr Savadi said. Well, let's wait for him to DO something criminal on the prestigious floor of the house so that we could press for his resignation.
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