On Wednesday evening, incessant rain lashed parts of the National Capital Region, with a heavy downpour of 50mm per hour. The drenching rain continued into Thursday, resulting in waterlogging in several areas of the capital region. The torrential rain in New Delhi did not even spare the newly constructed Parliament building, with reports of leaks inside the building. Despite the severity of the natural calamity, the opposition in India did not shy away from playing politics. Opposition politicians and their supporters claimed on social media that the old Parliament building, constructed by the British, never leaked, while the newly constructed building began leaking within a year of its inauguration.
Congress leader Dr Syed Naseer Hussain claimed on X, ‘Condition of the country’s capital worsened after a few hours of rain. From the Parliament to the roads everything is flooded. Old Parliament building built 100 years ago never faced any leakage but the new Parliament built just a year ago has started leaking.’
Congress supporter Roshan Rai tweeted while sharing an infographic, ‘Nature just exposed the BJP brutally.’
Reshma Alam claimed, ‘Old parliament building survived 100 years! New parliament building can’t survive 1 year !’
Surender Jatti asserted, ‘The new parliament building is leaking which was started in 2023, the old one is stand still which was started in 1927. what in the hell is going on with this morons!!!’
Muhammad Riyas wrote, ‘Hey Andh bhkaths, who is spreading hate and barking against the Kerala. Did you see this? Old Parliament building built 100 years ago never faced any leakage but the new Parliament built just a year ago has started leaking.’
Congress supporter and parody account Newton wrote, ‘Modi hai to mumkin hai’
Congress supporter брат wrote, ‘ Why can’t they construct with Sanatani standards?’
We began our fact-checking process by examining media reports regarding leakage issues in the old parliament building. A report published by India Today on August 19, 2010, stated: ‘Water accumulates inside Parliament premises. Amid heavy downpour outside Parliament, a Congress member on Thursday drew the attention of the Speaker to a stray leak from the roof of the Lok Sabha. ‘Madam, sadan mein pani tapak raha hai (water is dripping in the House),’ Jagdambika Pal said during Zero Hour and pointed out the place from where water was leaking.’
India Today’s report further mentioned, ‘Concerned over the wear and tear of the Parliament House building, Speaker Meira Kumar has already constituted a high-level committee headed by her to protect the heritage structure.’
Additionally, we found a report from Aajtak published on July 18, 2014. The Aajtak report noted: ‘In Delhi, the impact of thursday’s rain was seen in the Lok Sabha when water started leaking from the dome of the Parliament building and falling onto the seats of the MPs. During the discussion on the central government’s first budget, around 7:30 PM, large droplets began falling onto the seats in the middle of the house. The members sitting there were surprised and started moving to other places, providing the ruling party and the opposition an opportunity to tease each other.’
Moreover, other reports describe the waterlogging problem in the old parliament building. For instance, a Zee News report from July 20, 2018, mentioned: ‘On a day when debate and the decision on the no-confidence motion in the Lok Sabha promised to heat up national politics, heavy rains early on Friday morning lashed the national capital, leading to waterlogging outside the Parliament. The roads leading to the Parliament were submerged, and water pumps had to be used just outside the main building to clear entry and exit points.’
We also found reports from The Hindu published in September 2013, which stated: ‘Leaking roofs and corroding reinforcement have been identified as triggers for the deterioration of the Parliament House building. A new report on the fitness of the eight-decade-old heritage structure blamed water seepage and lack of maintenance for turning the building decrepit.’
Another report from The Telegraph in 2013 said: ‘The Rajya Sabha had to be adjourned over a stench. It later turned out that the air-handling units of the air-conditioners were too close to a block of toilets. The problem was fixed by opening the loo ventilators that had been sealed by security. Two months later, the Lok Sabha secretariat — the custodian of Parliament House — wrote to the urban development ministry that the building was overburdened and a new one should be built.’
In conclusion, the old parliament building was a relic, unfit for functioning. Old parliament suffered many problems like roof leakage, waterlogging, and stench. It was a collapsing building, described by former House Speaker Meira Kumar as “silently weeping”. Hence, the claim of Zero leakage in 100-year history of Old Parliament building is Misleading and baseless.
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