New dress for Parliament staff: Congress questions 'lotus' in design

New Delhi: A new dress code with floral motif for Parliament staff kicked off a political row on Tuesday with the Congress dubbing it as "cheap" tactics to promote the ruling party's poll symbol.

According to an internal circular issued by the Lok Sabha Secretariat, the marshals, security staff and officials, chamber attendants and drivers have been issued new uniforms which they have to don once the new parliament building starts functioning.

The 'bandhgala' suit of bureaucrats will be replaced with a magenta or deep pink Nehru jacket. The shirts for them will also have floral design.

The employees will wear khaki-coloured pants.

The new attire for the marshals in both houses of Parliament will now include Manipuri turbans. The Parliament Security Staff will be seen in army camouflage pattern fatigues instead of the blue safari suits.

Women officers have been assigned bright coloured sarees with jackets to be worn during winters.

The Congress accused the BJP of making the "Parliament a one-sided partisan thing" and wondered why the lotus motif was used in the dress designs.

"Why lotus only? Why can't a peacock or why can't a tiger? Oh, they're not BJP party election symbol. Why this fall sir Om Birla," Congress whip in Lok Sabha Manickam Tagore said on X.

"How cheap they are. They did it in G20 also. Now also they are doing it and saying it is the national flower," he said.

"This kind of pettiness is not right. Hope the BJP grows up and not make the Parliament a one-sided partisan thing," he alleged.

Tagore said the Parliament is becoming a part of a party's symbol.

"It is unfortunate. The Parliament was above all parties. It shows that the BJP is interfering in every other institution," he said.  The parliament session is set to begin on September 18 in the old building.

The parliament proceedings are expected to shift to the new building on September 19 on Ganesh Chaturthi, which is considered auspicious for making new beginnings.