New Delhi: Union Minister Smriti Irani, who defeated Congress President Rahul Gandhi in Amethi, received the longest applause when she took oath as member of the 17th Lok Sabha on Monday. As soon as she was called for oath taking, ruling BJP members, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, other union ministers and MPs were seen enthusiastically thumping the desk for a long time.
After taking oath in Hindi, Irani greeted pro-tem Speaker Virendra Kumar and also oposition leaders, including Rahul Gandhi's mother and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, who reciprocated the greetings with a namaste gesture. Rahul Gandhi was not present in the House at that time. The Union Textile Minister defeated Gandhi by a margin of over 55,000 votes in Uttar Pradesh's Amethi constitutency, considered as the pocket borough of Gandhi family for long.
