Cong walks out of HP House
PROTEST MLAs move out after speaker rejects motion to discuss drug menace and law and order
SHIMLA : Congress legislators walked out of the Himachal Pradesh assembly after speaker Rajiv Bindal rejected an adjournment motion to discuss the drug menace and the law and order situation in the state.
As the House assembled for the day, opposition leader Mukesh Agnihotri wanted to know the fate of the motion moved under Rule 67 of the Vidhan Sabha by Congress MLAs Asha Kumari, Ram Lal Thakur and Harshwardhan Chauhan. However, Bindal said the motion could not be allowed as Rule 69 ( 2) of the Vidhan Sabha did not allow to discuss more than one issue.
He said that the Congress had clubbed three issues together and it referred to ‘mafia raj’, law and order and drug menace. Bindal said that he had referred the matter to the government for consideration. However, the Congress insisted that the speaker should allow the matter to be taken up before question hour. But the speaker did not agree to this as well. Then, the Congress memrelated bers resorted to sloganeering in the House. Amid uproar, the speaker announced to start question hour. In the meantime, education minister Suresh Bhardwaj intervened and alleged that ‘chitta’ comes to Himachal from the assembly constituency represented by the leader of opposition. He said opposition members also need training of how they should behave in the House.
After this, the Congress members staged a walkout from the House raising slogans against he government.
Chief minister Jai Ram Thakur, who holds the home portfolio, condemned the opposition move. he said his government was ready to discuss the issues to the public. “Congress was looking for an alibi and its members are just trying to waste time of the House,” he said. He said that the Congress staged a walkout to derive political mileage only.
AGNIHOTRI FLAYS GOVT ON LAW AND ORDER
Later, outside the House, Agnihotri castigated the government over the law and order situation.
“In the last seven months, 64 murders and 196 cases of rape have been reported across the state and the government should hold discussion on such a sensitive issue,” said Agnihotri.
He said the present government has completely failed to maintain law and order in the state.
Giving details, Agnihotri said the highest number of 17 murders have been reported from Kangra, 12 in Shimla, 10 in Una, five each in Kullu and Mandi and the rest in other districts.
Thirty cases of rape have been recorded in Mandi, 30 in Kangra, Sirmour (24), Una (15), Kullu (18), Bilaspur (14) and the rest in other districts.