During a heated argument, two politicians from India’s ruling party dug their heels in so deep one resorted to thrashing the other with his shoe. Now the stars of the resulting viral video are facing a disciplinary action.

The boot battle began after an argument about who would get the credit for a new road at a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) meeting in Northern India, near Nepal. When one of the representatives asked why a certain name was not included on the road's foundation stone, his opponent replied that such questions could be directed to his shoe. He was all too happy to oblige, pulling off his shoe and laying down some blows of footwear fury, all while lacing insults with words unfit for a statesman. The fight then descended into a less-than-impressive bout of mutual slapping.

#WATCH Sant Kabir Nagar: BJP MP Sharad Tripathi and BJP MLA Rakesh Singh exchange blows after an argument broke out over placement of names on a foundation stone of a project pic.twitter.com/gP5RM8DgId — ANI UP (@ANINewsUP) March 6, 2019

Footage of the fight quickly started to make the rounds on social media, undoubtedly serving as a serious embarrassment for the BJP’s leader, Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The incident may have even helped set the opposing Indian National Congress off on the right foot ahead of elections in May

The Congress was quick to troll their opponents for their shameful behavior, posting a video of the fight on Twitter which refers to the BJP as “the Bharatiya Joot (shoe) Party” and offering a warning to the audience: “Disclaimer: This act has been performed by experts, please do not attempt this on anyone.”

आज का मनोरंजन पेश करते हुए भारतीय जूता पार्टीDisclaimer: This act has been performed by experts, please do not attempt this on anyone. #MeraBootSabseMazbootpic.twitter.com/vs4h34khkD — Congress (@INCIndia) March 6, 2019

While the incident was certainly not an advisable PR move, it did seem to provide some with welcome relief from a news cycle otherwise filled with doom and gloom over rising violence between India and neighboring Pakistan.

#BJP MP Sharad Tripathi (in red jacket) launches a chappal strike against BJP MLA Rakesh Baghel, in Sant Kabir Nagar in UP. Truly crossing the Line of Control. pic.twitter.com/bf9iAusnlt — Uma Sudhir (@umasudhir) March 6, 2019

Surgical Strike - 3BJP MLA, MP's 'Joota' fight! pic.twitter.com/21IzzS7VeQ — Salman Nizami (@SalmanNizami_) March 6, 2019

“I regret the incident and feel bad about it. What happened was against my normal behavior,” the footwear-wielding warrior told local news source ANI. The BJP’s regional president has summoned both lawmakers and assured he would take disciplinary action that fits the crime.

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Shoe-bashing is something of a tradition in India and parts of the Arab world, although it is generally used against despised political enemies rather than people from the same party. Feet are considered to be unclean, which is why a blow from a slipper automatically adds insult to injury.

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