Ruckus in both the Houses over PM jibe
NEW DELHI: The Rajya Sabha was adjourned for the day on Wednesday amid sloganeering by Congress members demanding an apology from Prime Minister Narendra Modi for his remarks against Manmohan Singh during the Gujarat election campaign after chairman M Venkaiah Naidu said there was no question of an apology.
The proceedings were stalled after the Congress and other opposition members created an uproar, demanding that Modi come to the House and clarify his remarks against Singh. The Upper House was adjourned twice — first during the Zero Hour as opposition members disrupted proceedings by trooping into the Well and raising slogans and then again in the Question Hour when similar scenes continued.
“Nobody is going to give apology. Nothing happened in the House. No statement is made in the House. There is no practice of suspension of Question Hour. Don’t make a mockery of the House. Already wrong message is going,” an agitated Naidu told the protesting members when the House reassembled at noon after the first adjournment.
Meanwhile, Congress members of the Lok Sabha staged a walkout on Wednesday after being denied permission to speak on the allegations made by Modi against his predecessor.
They also alleged that the treasury benches were directing the Chair and not allowing the Congress leaders to speak.
The lower House, which witnessed two adjournments in the pre-lunch sitting over the issue amid protests by the Congress MPs, was disrupted again as it met at 2 pm as they gathered near the Speaker’s podium raising slogans.
While most of the Congress members were near the Speaker’s podium, the party’s leader in the House Mallikarjun Kharge requested permission to raise a point of order.
Deputy Speaker M. Thambidurai, who was in the Chair at the time, said permission could only be granted if the issue was related to the bill which was being taken up -- The Public Premises (Eviction of Unauthorised Occupants) Amendment Bill.