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 .
As soon as she was called for oath taking, ruling Bharatiya Janata Party 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 opposition leaders, including Rahul Gandhi’s mother and United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi, who reciprocated the greetings with a namaste gesture.
Congress president Rahul Gandhi, who apparently was abroad had returned back to Delhi, but was not present in the House at that time giving the first day a miss.
