Jadav Lal Nath was captured intently watching a clip that appears to be pornographic.
Tripura BJP MLA Jadav Lal Nath, who was seen in a video allegedly watching porn on his mobile phone during the state assembly session, has an explanation for the embarrassing incident. Mr Nath, the MLA of Bagbassa constituency in North Tripura district, claimed obscene videos started playing on his phone when he received a call on it.
"I do not know how this happened. I was not watching porn videos. I suddenly received a call and the video started playing when I opened it to check. I tried to close the video but closing it takes time," he told ANI.
He also said he would "accept whatever decision the Chief Minister and the party president take". "I did not play the video deliberately," the MLA said.
In the video that has gone viral, Mr Nath was captured scrolling through several videos and intently watching a clip that appears to be pornographic while the speaker and the other MLAs could be heard in the background.
It apparently happened when proceedings were underway in the assembly on the last day of the Budget session on Wednesday.
The incident has sparked outrage with the opposition demanding strong action against him.
"This incident has tarnished the image of all MLAs. This man should be appropriately punished. Use of mobile phones is completely prohibited in the assembly, how could he watch pornography?" state Congress president Birajit Sinha said.
Leader of opposition Animesh Debbarma also demanded action against Nath. "The speaker should take stern action against such an act," he said.
Speaker Biswabandhu Sen said he is yet to receive a complaint over the issue.
"I have not received any complaint. It has gone viral on social media but a lot of things go viral on social media. Until there is a proper complaint, I cannot comment. When that's done, I will investigate and act according to Assembly rules," he said.
The BJP has demanded an explanation from the MLA and summoned him, party sources said.
This incident, however, is not the first time a BJP leader has found themselves in an embarrassing situation. In 2012, three BJP ministers of Karnataka -- Lakshman Savdi, CC Patil and Krishna Palemar -- were allegedly caught watching porn in the assembly.