Bengaluru, Jan 29 (IANS): Karnataka Congress member of the Legislative Council and party spokesperson, Prakash Rathod was caught on camera allegedly watching obscene messages while participating in the on-going seven-day legislature session here on Friday.

A 15 second clip went viral after a regional TV news channel showed Rathod scrolling through "exclusive" stuff on his mobile, which was recorded by a TV cameraman perched behind in the elevated media gallery. Rathod was sitting on the seat allotted to him in the House.

As the legislature session was in progress, TV channels beamed the clip, each claiming the footage to be "exclusive."

Rathod on his part denied that he ever watched obscene clips in public places like the House. He said that what is being alleged is far from the truth. "I did not watch any video. During the Question Hour, I was to ask Question number 7. I was trying to see a message, whether I had received an answer for my question or not. At that time I realised that my phone was cluttered with messages, that is when I was trying to delete some messages because my mobile storage was full," he explained.

He added that some TV channels cameramen perched behind him recorded and claimed that he was watching some objectionable content. "This is not true. There is no obscene content in my phone," he declared.

The Karnataka legislature is not new to such controversies. In the past, the first controversy related to watching a porn clip had become a hot topic in 2012, when regional channels showed then three ministers including minister for Ecology, Environment and Ports J. Krishna Palemar, Women and Child Welfare Minister C. C. Patil peeping into minister Lakshman Savadi's phone. All three were in then chief minister, D. V. Sadananada Gowda' cabinet. This episode had cost them their ministries the next day.

After this, TV cameramen captured former Congress minister, U. T. Khader scrolling through his phone and seeing a girl's photograph in 2016, but it turned out to be his daughter's photograph, who had sent it to him on his phone.

In 2018, the lone BSP MLA (now expelled from the party), N. Mahesh was caught on camera browsing through several girls' photographs on his phone, that turned out to be photos of prospective brides for his son sent by his relatives. In both the episodes, the MLAs had flayed the media for maligning them and their family members by telecasting the incident.