# Himachal privilege motions over National Anthem row by both Congress and BJP 2026-08-26T22:46:01+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet Both the ruling Congress and opposition BJP in Himachal Pradesh will move privilege motions against each other over allegations of disrespect to the National Anthem. Leader of Opposition Jai Ram Thakur said the BJP will move a privilege motion against Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu for accusing BJP members of disrespecting the anthem on August 21, claiming video footage shows no disrespect. Thakur also said the BJP will file a criminal defamation case in the High Court. Revenue minister Jagat Singh Negi alleged that BJP legislators had shown disrespect and are hiding behind camera ambiguity. CM Sukhu demanded an apology from the BJP and said he will move a privilege motion against the BJP for making false statements. Separately, Sukhu announced that teacher appointments for all CBSE-affiliated schools in the state will be completed by September 30, and Rs 80 crore has been allocated for computer labs in those schools. ## Indian Opinion Analysis Privilege motions in state assemblies are rare and carry serious political weight: if upheld, they can lead to suspension of the member. The National Anthem insult allegation has no independent verification mechanism beyond the video footage, which both sides interpret differently. Himachal's assembly has 68 seats, with Congress holding 40 and BJP 25, so any privilege motion will likely pass along party lines. The defamation case in the High Court could take months. Watch for the Speaker's ruling on the admissibility of both privilege motions, which could come within days. ## Coverage - hindustantimes.com Straight news report, leads with both sides' statements without favouring either. This brief was synthesised by AI from the source linked above. Tags: BJP, CBSE, Congress, Himachal Pradesh, Jai Ram Thakur, Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/himachal-privilege-motions-over-national-anthem-row-by-both-congress-and-bjp/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/himachal-privilege-motions-over-national-anthem-row-by-both-congress-and-bjp/#story-in-brief Review state: restored archive article, accurate at time of publication, not offered to search indexes. How this brief was made: an AI model read the report linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/