TMC MP Mahua Moitra’s maiden speech in Parliament breaking the internet

New Delhi, June 26: First-time parliamentarian Mahua Moitra of the Trinamool Congress, remained firmly on Twitter trends with her maiden speech in parliament where she warned that India is displaying all the signs of fascism put up in a poster at the US Holocaust Memorial Museum. "We have to decide which side of history we want to be on... the side that upholds the constitution or the side that becomes its pallbearers," the 42-year-old lawmaker from West Bengal's Krishnanagar said.

The MP from West Bengal's Krishnanagar was making the speech to oppose the Motion of Thanks to the President's Address, and drew attention to issues including 'superficial nationalism, disdain for human rights, media control, obsession with national security, the intertwining of religion and government, disdain for intellectuals and the arts, and the erosion of independence in the electoral system' in her address, reported Scroll.

Moitra, a former investment banker with JP Morgan, who ditched a flourishing career in London and New York to join electoral politics in Bengal, has already been hailed as a hero for her legal fight against the BJP's bid to 'control' and 'censor' social media. Her maiden speech is breaking the internet.

In the present Parliament session sullied by heckling, sexist jibes, and blatant misogyny displayed by the old boys' club, Moitra just blew their bold-face to smithereens. Interestingly, she did it with so much grace, dignity, and fierceness, that the men, mostly her political rivals, were evidently bewilder.

While MPs from the ruling alliance continued to jeer at her, Moitra urged the Chair to put the House in order and continues. "Slogans and symbols are being used to test allegiance. There is no one symbol or slogan that can show any Indian as a patriot."

Moitra added: "There is a resounding disdain for human rights that is permeating every level of government. She said that there has been a ten-fold rise in the number of hate crimes giving an example of the Pehlu Khan case and recently the lynching of Tabrez Ansari in Jharkhand.

Moitra criticised the ruling dispensation for its "unimaginable subjugation and controlling of mass media today."

"Five of the largest media organisation in India are today either indirectly controlled or indirectly indebted to one man in this country. TV channels spend the majority of the air time broadcasting propaganda for the ruling party. Let the government come out with facts and figures to show their ad spent in every TV channel," she said. Moitra added that the Union information and broadcasting ministry "employs over 120 people" just to check content on TV channels and ensure that no anti-government stories are circulating in the media.