New Delhi | The Lok Sabha was Thursday adjourned for the day following protests by opposition parties over various issues, including alleged corruption in the
Rafale deal and Cauvery river water.
Besides opposition members, ruling BJP’s ally Shiv Sena also held protests in the House demanding law for construction of Ram Temple in Ayodhaya. Speaking in the House, party leader Anandrao Adsul said the BJP got full majority but “forgot” Hindutava, which was the main reason for the alliance between the two parties.
BJP’s Meenakshi Lekhi raised the issue of rape of women by their acquaintances and demanded speedy trial in these cases.
Only Adsul and Lekhi got an opportunity to speak in the House which saw members of the AIADMK, TDP and Congress raise slogans in support of their demands. As the protests continued, Speaker Sumitra Mahajan asked members to allow the House to function but in vain. The House was then adjourned for the day.
Earlier as soon as the Question Hour began after paying tributes to martyrs of the 2001 Parliament attack, members from the Congress, TDP and AIADMK rushed to the Well raising slogans, following which the Speaker adjourned the House.
TDP member Venkateshwara Rao (Babu) used a mike installed in the Well for the oath of a new member to prop up a poster seeking special status for Andhra Pradesh. A Lok Sabha secretariat staffer tried to convince him not to use the mike. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Narendra Singh Tomar too tried to convince him to keep down the mike. The TDP member’s action invited the ire of Speaker Sumitra Mahajan who warned him that he will be named.
Once a member is named, he or she has to leave the House chamber. The Speaker then adjourned the House for nearly 10 minutes till 11.20 AM.
When the House assembled again, Mahajan reminded members that they can raise issues under various rules. Apparently referring to the Lok Sabha polls due in 2019, she said it was a “crucial time” and members should use it to raise issues related to the public.
She said Lok Sabha is for all states and regions and all should get a chance to raise their respective issues. But opposition members remained unconvinced and returned to the Well. As the bedlam continued, the House was adjourned for nearly 30 minutes till noon.
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