Parliament only trying to expand your limited vocabulary: Chidambaram

Parliament has not "banned" any words, it is only trying to expand "your limited vocabulary", senior Congress leader P Chidambaram said on Thursday in a jibe amid the row on a new list of 'unparliamentary' expressions.

Chidambaram's remarks came hours after Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla asserted that no word is banned from use in Parliament, but only expunged on the basis of context and all members are free to express their views.

The updated list of unparliamentary words include 'jumlajeevi', 'ashamed', 'taanashah', 'abused', 'betrayed', 'corrupt', 'drama', 'hypocrisy', 'incompetent', drawing sharp reaction from the opposition.

Also Read | Opposition flays 'gag order' on some terms used in Parliament

"Parliament has not 'banned' any words. Parliament is only trying to expand your limited vocabulary," Chidambaram said.

"Don't be 'ashamed'. Just say you are 'mortified' by the Government's conduct. Don't call the government 'corrupt'. Just say they have stolen the people's money. Don't accuse the government of enacting a 'drama'. Just say the Government is staging a play," the former Union minister said.

Let the government-run to the Speaker and the Chairman and beg them to ban 'mortified', 'stolen' and 'play', Chidambaram said.

In a series of tweets, the Congress leader also asked that if the government is "incompetent", will it be right to describe it as an unparliamentary government.

Also read: Words like 'ashamed', 'abused, 'betrayed', 'corrupt' to be unparliamentary in LS, RS

"If the law is 'abused' by the investigating agencies, will it be correct to accuse them of unparliamentary behaviour and haul them up before the Committee on Privileges?" he said.

As a controversy erupted, Birla addressed a press conference to clarify the issue. He said bringing out such a booklet of unparliamentary words and expressions has been a practice since 1954. It is updated routinely including expunged words from state legislatures as well.

"No word has been banned. Members are free to express their views. No one can snatch that right, but it should be as per decorum of Parliament," Birla told reporters even as the opposition targeted the government, accusing it of listing every word used by them to "describe how BJP was destroying India" as unparliamentary.