Speaker Om Birla on Friday said a Lok Sabha committee will be constituted to investigate the disruption of House proceedings between March 2 and March 5, ANI reported. The committee will be headed by Birla and representatives from multiple parties will be part of it.
On Thursday, the Speaker suspended seven Congress MPs from attending Lok Sabha on the remaining days of the Budget Session for disrupting the House. The leaders who were suspended on charges of gross misconduct were Gaurav Gogoi, TN Prathapan, Dean Kuriakose, R Unnithan, Manickam Tagore, Benny Behnan and Gurjeet Singh Aujla.
Meanwhile, proceedings in the Lok Sabha were disrupted for the fifth consecutive day on Friday as Opposition members shouted slogans against last week’s communal violence in North East Delhi, which has killed at least 53 people. Proceedings lasted for only two minutes, following which commotion began, PTI reported.
Several Opposition members, including Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, stormed the Well of the House and chanted slogans holding placards demanding the resignation of Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Members of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the Indian Union Muslim League also protested. Some members wore black bands in protest.
As Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla stayed away from the House due to the protests for the third day, Kirit Solanki, who was sitting in the chair, adjourned the Lok Sabha till 2 pm. He later revised it to noon.
When the House reconvened, some members raised the matter of the suspension of Congress MPs on Thursday. “Seven of our MPs were suspended for the entire Budget session, yesterday,” Chowdhury said, according to ANI. “We don’t know on what basis was this done? This is not a minor thing. We only want a discussion on the issue of Delhi violence.”
Amid the chaos, the Lok Sabha managed to pass the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Second Amendment) Bill. The bill seeks to consolidate the existing framework by creating a single law for insolvency and bankruptcy. The Lok Sabha was adjourned till 11 am on March 11.
Rajya Sabha Chairperson Venkaiah Naidu adjourned the House till 11 am on March 11 as protests raged. “I appeal to all including the government and Opposition to discuss among themselves to come to some sort of meaningful solution to see that the House functions effectively,” he said.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi led protests near the Mahatma Gandhi statue in Parliament, demanding the resignation of Union Home Minister Amit Shah.
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