Expressing differing opinions and shouting at each other may perhaps be the norm inside the Parliament, but outside the architectural marvel, politicians seem to enjoy the same things as we, the voters, do. On Friday, this spirit was captured in a viral video that had our women politicians getting together and making merry.
The annual lunch hosted by the Union Minister for Food Processing, Harsimrat Kaur Badal, and her husband, former Deputy Chief Minister of Punjab, Sukhbir Singh Badal, in their residence, was held on Friday, after the union budget was presented in the Parliament. The lunch get-together saw the who’s who of politicians in attendance, including union ministers Ravi Shankar Prasad, Nirmala Sitharaman, Smriti Irani, DMK MP Kanimozhi, NCP MP Supriya Sule, BJP MP Kirron Kher and others. After the guests had had their fill of authentic Punjabi food, a few women MPs joined hands to whirl and play.
The video, which was tweeted by Harsimrat Kaur Badal herself, shows Kirron Kher, Smriti Irani, Kanimozhi, Harsimrat Kaur etc holding each other’s hands in a circle and moving around. After a round of laughter-filled circling, Smriti Irani and Harsimrat split from the group, hold each other’s hands tight and whirl fast, much to the cheer and amusement of the photographers who were present there. The whirling was so quick that by the time the lensmen took their pictures, the women were done with their play.
Life worked its magic on us yesterday afternoon, when a routine lunch became a trip to childhood. @smritiirani @KirronKherBJP @AnupriyaSPatel @KanimozhiDMK @supriya_sule pic.twitter.com/PEyJMEzL7r
— Harsimrat Kaur Badal (@HarsimratBadal_) February 1, 2019
This show of camaraderie between the MPs has made Twitter abuzz with netizens chiming in with their comments.
Let there be more women in politics who work hard and play hard
— Badri Partha (@NarainNRI) February 1, 2019
Good to see such #Women Bonding across the party affiliations...that too so close to the epic #Election2019 ahead https://t.co/RLxLLLuppg
— Sunil Singla (@Sunsin11) February 2, 2019
According to a report in Times of India, the lunch is an annual affair, which sees chefs from Punjab preparing the best of traditional Punjabi fare. Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Consumer Affairs Minister Ram Vilas Paswan, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan, and Union Minister JP Nadda were also spotted in the lunch meet.