Bangalore South MP Tejasvi Surya speaks to The Indian Express about his first day in Parliament and issues he plans to raise in the House Have you set any agenda for the current session? In this session, there might be a discussion on the draft national education policy. There will also be discussion on the budget. And I will raise issues related to Bengaluru suburban rail network and Bengaluru's crumbling infrastructure. I will also make a specific request to government with regard to the IBPS banking entrance exam to consider the interest of Kannada students. You are the successor to senior parliamentarian Ananth Kumar who held the seat for more than two decades. Do you feel any pressure? There is absolutely no pressure and the people have showed me a lot of love. Ananth Kumarji was a mentor to me. I am fortunate that I have got a chance to contest from a seat which he held for so long. On the first day of the new Parliament session, you were seen in traditional attire. What was the reason? When we are entering an institution like Parliament, I thought it would be appropriate to wear something auspicious and something that represents Kannada culture. How was your first day in Parliament? When you enter the hallowed corridors, where once greats like Ambedkar, Sardar Patel, K M Munshi, Rajagopalachari, Atalji, where all of them walked, it is just a sense of overwhelming gratitude for the people who elected us. In what language did you take your oath? I took oath in Kannada. It is my mother tongue and it is one of the oldest classical languages of India.
