The Delhi Assembly this afternoon witnessed a massive uproar after BJP MLA Parvesh Verma took a dig at AAP’s Atishi as she interrupted him during the Question Hour. Mr Verma, the Delhi Public Works Department (PWD) Minister, was answering a question on the pilgrimage schemes and the financial support provided by the government for various religious trips when he was interrupted by Ms Atishi, who is also the Leader of Opposition.

“Before addressing this (the question), I want to clarify a few facts. In the previous financial year, 2024-2025, the previous government, which heavily advertised its pilgrimage scheme, allocated a budget of Rs 80 crore for the Chief Minister’s Pilgrimage Scheme. However, shockingly, not a single rupee was spent – zero expenditure. This proves that the scheme was only for publicity,” Mr Verma said.

Ms Atishi, the former Delhi chief minister, and some AAP lawmakers then stood up and started speaking, forcing the BJP leader to take a pause.

“Kahan se laaye ho bhai (where did you get her from brother),” Mr Verma then asked AAP MLAs in an apparent dig at Ms Atishi.

The senior AAP leader then again stood up and said it was an “unparliamentary language”.

“I only said ‘bhai’. How is it unparliamentary?,” Mr Verma shot back, with Speaker Vijender Gupta backing him up. 

Watch: Delhi Minister Parvesh Verma says, “…The Minister was asked about the pilgrimage schemes and the financial support provided by the government for various religious trips. Before addressing this, I want to clarify a few facts that will be interesting for all members to… pic.twitter.com/skvvH9tsfZ

— IANS (@ians_india) March 27, 2025

As the uproar continued, Mr Gupta marshalled out AAP MLAs Vishesh Ravi and Kuldeep Kumar.

Earlier today, Ms Atishi had written to Mr Gupta, expressing concern over the rejection of opposition members’ special mentions on law and order issues.

Criticising the decision, she questioned why discussions on rising crime in the capital, including cases of rape and shootings, are being prevented from being raised in the assembly.

“If rape happens in Delhi or bullets are fired in the streets, should this not be discussed in the assembly?,” she wrote.

आज दिल्ली विधान सभा में @Gupta_vijender जी ने कहा कि बिगड़ती हुई कानून व्यवस्था पर चर्चा सदन के समय की बर्बादी है!

यह बहुत शर्मनाक बात है कि दिल्ली में गोलियाँ चल रही हैं, महिलाओं के साथ अपराध हो रहे हैं, ड्रग्स बिक रहे हैं और भाजपा के अध्यक्ष डबल इंजन सरकार की नाकामी को छिपा… https://t.co/6dwevhWtOH

— Atishi (@AtishiAAP) March 27, 2025

She also claimed that it was the first time in the history of the Delhi Assembly that such crucial issues had been dismissed.