BJP and Congress members pushed and shoved each other in Lok Sabha on Monday as opposition parties vehemently protested over the issue of violence in Delhi and demanded resignation of Home Minister Amit Shah.
Lok Sabha was adjourned thrice till 4.30 pm amid continuingruckus. Speaker Om Birla said that he was pained by what has happened duringthe day, before adjourning the House till Tuesday.
As soon as the House met at 2 pm, opposition members startedraising slogans from the Well against the government.
They went into the area of treasury benches carrying a blackbanner, which demanded Shah’s resignation, as Speaker Om Birla took up thelisted business.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi condemned their”unruly behaviour” and asked the Speaker to continue withproceedings.
Joshi alleged that “these are the people” who haveprovoked the riots. “They murdered 3,000 people in 1984 (riots) and did noinvestigation. The priority is to restore peace… but they want to createtension,” he said.
Seeking to restore normalcy in the House, Birla askedopposition members who were in the Well to take their seats even as theycontinued to shout “we want justice” and “Amit ShahMurdabad” (Down with Amit Shah).
They were also holding placards saying “stop hatespeech, save our India”.
Things took a turn for worse as Congress’ Gaurav Gogoi andRavneet Singh Bittu holding the black banner went to the Treasury benches whereBJP’s Sanjay Jaiswal was speaking on ‘Vivaad Se Vishwas’ Bill. BJP members,including Ramesh Bidhuri and Nishikant Dubey, asked them to return to the Well.
Some Congress members tore papers and hurled them in theair.
The charge by the Congress MPs angered the BJP members,including many from back benches, who rushed towards the Congress members.
Members from both sides then began pushing and shoving eachother following which the proceedings were adjourned till 3 pm by the Speaker.
Union Ministers Ravi Shankar Prasad and Smriti Irani wereseen trying to pacify the agitated members.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi and party leader RahulGandhi were present in the House during the uproar. When the House reassembledat 3 pm, some BJP members were seen blocking the way to their side of the Well.Congress member Ramya Haridas complained about being manhandled by BJP members.
BJP’s Rama Devi, who was in the Chair, adjourned the Houseagain till 4 pm saying “whatever you have done is wrong”. But theruckus continued when the House again met and it was adjourned till 4.30 pm bythe Chair. However, the slogan-shouting by the BJP members continued.
They chanted slogans like “Desh ki raksha kaun karega, humkarenge hum karenge (Who will defend the nation, we will do it)” and”Mahatma Gandhi amar rahein, nakli Gandhi jail mein rahein (Long live MahatmaGandhi, fake Gandhis stay in jail)”.
Some Opposition members placed a placard demanding Shah’sresignation on the Speaker’s table but it was swiftly removed by the staff.
Earlier, Birla asked leaders of oppositions parties toensure that their members take their respective seats as the “people ofthe country are watching (the proceedings)”.
“This is the temple of democracy. There are certainrules and tradition. You should not come to the Well,” he said.
Birla also said “as you are responsible representativesof people here, it is your collective responsibility to maintain peace andtranquility.”
As the House met at 4.30 pm, the Speaker said, “We mustmaintain decorum in the House. It belongs to every member.
“I am personally pained at the developments in theHouse. You are not pained. I do not want to run proceedings under suchcircumstances…. Everybody should deliberate to ensure that the dignity of theHouse is maintained.” He said senior members of the House should do theirbit to ensure it runs smoothly.
Amid the din, two bills — The Medical Termination ofPregnancy (Amendment) Bill and Mineral Laws Amendment Bill– were introduced.
Also the Direct Tax Vivaad Se Vishwas Bill was moved forconsideration and passing.
In the morning, Lok Sabha proceedings were adjourned till 2pm as a mark of respect for sitting JD(U) member Baidyanath Prasad Mahto fromValmiki Nagar in Bihar who died on February 28.