New Delhi: The Rajya Sabha was on Wednesday adjourned for the day amid pandemonium by the Opposition who were demanding revocation of suspension of the 12 members.
When the House met in the post lunch session, after two adjournments earlier in the day over the suspension issue, House Vice Chairman Bhubaneswar Kalita asked for the short duration discussion on Covid focusing on the Omicron variant to be held.
Sushmita Dev of the TMC was called to speak, but as soon as she raised the suspension of the 12 members, the Vice Chairperson asked her not to veer from the topic.
Dev requested that the suspended members be allowed to participate. Then Union Minister and Leader of the House Piyush Goyal intervened to say that while he respects her views as a lady member, she should also be sympathetic to the issue of how the opposition members who were suspended “attacked the lady marshalls” (during the Monsoon Session) and added, “the least we can expect is an apology to the House”.
“The staff is working to protect and look after the House, “ he said, and added that “the least expectation is an apology and then we will be benevolent”. “And if they expect that they will attack a lady marshall, and attack marshalls of the House…. It is very unfortunate that senior members are unwilling to repent for actions of their colleagues,” he added, amid vociferous protests by the Opposition to his comments.
Then Dev and Goyal had an exchange of words on the issue, with the Vice Chair requesting all members to go back to their seats. Goyal said the government is willing to consider revocation of the suspension, but the members have to apologise for the attack on lady marshalls. “How can you attack them and then expect them to serve the House?”, he asked.
The Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge got up to again plead the cause of the suspended members, but he was not allowed to continue. “They are being kept from the House for a gunah (sin) that we have not done,” he said.
However, the Vice Chair would not allow it, and called members to speak on the short duration discussion on Covid, with focus on the Omicron variant.
However, most opposition members, including Abhiranjan Biswas of the TMC, raised the issue of the suspended members. The Vice Chair would not allow them to proceed, and replaced them with new names. GK Vasan of the Tamil Maanila Congress from Tamil Nadu appealed for booster shots to be administered in view of the Omicron variant.
He said that 60 countries around the world are administering booster shots, and wanted the Health Ministry to tell the House about the efficacy.
Shiv Pratap Shukla of the BJP from UP, speaking on the subject, in a jibe at the protesting Opposition, said: “We are subjected to Omicron, and it is in the House,” pointing to the Opposition.
Opposition members besides shouting slogans, also held placards around the members who were speaking on the issue, forcing the Parliament TV crew to swivel the lens away from the posters. Manoj Kumar Jha of the RJD, who was called to speak, requested for the withdrawal of the suspension notice.
Asked to speak on the subject, he registered his protest against Shiv Pratap Shukla for referring to the Opposition as Omicron. As more members were called to speak, and the hue and cry showed no signs of abating, Vice Chair Kalita adjourned the proceedings till Thursday. Earlier in the day, the House was adjourned till 12 noon, minutes after it met at 11 am over Opposition protests. At 12.30 it was adjourned till 2 pm following continued protests.
In the noon session, Anand Sharma of the Congress said they had given notice for suspension of the termination of the 12 members. Deputy Chair of the House Harivansh Narayan Singh, reading out a statement, said the Congress leader had given notice to the Chair for termination of the suspension of the 12 members under rule 256.“On his persistent demand the Chair said he will examine the notice,” read out the Deputy Chair. However, Chairperson Venkaiah Naidu said that “the notice was not accompanied by a motion and was therefore inadmissible”.He said a motion can be moved with the consent of the Chairman.His statement was protested loudly by the Opposition, who shouted slogans continuously.
The members held placards and tried to block the camera view of members who were speaking during Question Hour, or stood near the members and drowned out their voice with their sloganeering. Despite the ongoing din, Deputy Chair Harivansh Narayan Singh continued the proceedings for half an hour, after which he adjourned the House till 2 pm.
The 12 members from five political parties were suspended on November 29, the first day of the winter session, for the rest of the session, for “unruly conduct” on the last day of the monsoon session on August 11.
