Sangsad Bhaban, June 17 -- A parliamentary attempt to erase a finger-pointing incident from the official record hit a constitutional roadblock on Wednesday when Speaker Hafiz Uddin Ahmad clarified that while words may be expunged, fingers enjoy a certain degree of parliamentary immunity.

The unusual debate emerged during budget discussions when ruling party lawmaker Rafiqul Islam Hilaly elected from Netrokona-3 demanded that remarks made by an opposition member on Sunday - along with an accompanying finger gesture - be removed from the record.

According to Hilali, the opposition MP had suggested that members seated in the back rows of the House do not consume drugs, while allegedly pointing towards government benches in a manner that im...