K.M. Shivalinge Gowda, Congress MLA from Arsikere constituency, during the Karnataka Assembly session in Bengaluru on February 4, 2026.
| Photo Credit: special arrangement
Alleged unparliamentary words exchanged between Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) members and Congress member K.M. Shivalinge Gowda led to chaos in the Assembly on Wednesday. The Speaker ordered for the words to be expunged. While Mr. Gowda alleged he was provoked because the BJP members called him a “thief”, it was not part of the records as the members were in the well of the House continuing their overnight dharna demanding the resignation of Excise Minister R.B. Thimmapur.
The House had to be adjourned for a few minutes, for the Speaker to try to broker peace between the two sides.
Though Speaker U.T. Khader asked both sides to express regret, neither did. Leader of Opposition R. Ashok said that this was a bad precedent set in the Assembly. BJP member V. Sunil Kumar read out past instances of unparliamentary words used by Mr. Gowda expunged from records, arguing he was prone to use such language.
Published – February 05, 2026 12:43 am IST
