BeyondHeadlines News Desk
New Delhi: Proceedings of both houses of Parliament were once again adjourned today, the second day of the Monsoon Session, till tomorrow following the continued ruckus created by the opposition on the issues like early passage of the Land Acquisition Bill and price rise.
Both Houses were first adjourned till 12 noon. But when the commotion did not end after the two houses reassembled, the speaker of the Lok Sabha and the chairman of the Rajya Sabha adjourned the houses till 2 p.m. In the afternoon it was adjourned till tomorrow within minutes.
The opposition stuck to its demand for discussing corruption and price rise as per the rules that entail voting and make Parliament recommendations binding on the government to tackle these issues. However, the Congress party is in no mood to relent on this – it is willing to allow discussion sans voting.
As soon as both the houses – Lok Sabha (lower house) and Rajya Sabha (upper house) – convened for the day’s business, members of the opposition parties stormed into the Well of the House to press for the demands.
Similar scenes could be witnessed when the two houses reassembled at 12 noon.
The Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) is also seeking an adjournment motion over the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) report that has put the blame on Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) for appointment of Suresh Kalmadi as Commonwealth Games’ Organising Committee chairman and for giving him sweeping powers.
The alleged involvement in 2G scam of Manmohan Singh and Chidambaram, who was the finance minister when spectrum licences were allocated in 2008, is also high on BJP’s agenda as it tries to corner the government inside the Parliament.
The Left has also made it clear that it will not allow the Parliament to function until the government allows for discussion and voting. “Government has done nothing on price rise despite assurances in the last session,” CPI-M leader Sitaram Yechury said.
However, the government is hopeful that the Opposition would not turn their protests into a Parliament deadlock as had happened in the Winter Session in 2010.
Both the Congress and the BJP had held strategy meet before Parliament convened today.
Yesterday, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had urged the Opposition to allow Parliament to function smoothly.
“It is our sincere desire that this session should move smoothly, that Parliament should debate and discuss all issues of national importance and the government is quite prepared on any subject that opposition would like to be taken up,” Manmohan Singh said.
Raja, the main accused in the 2G scam, has dragged Manmohan Singh and Home Minister P Chidambaram into what is billed as one of the biggest scandals in India.
Manmohan Singh has ruled out the possibility of a discussion on this. “The matter (2G) is before court. It should be left to be decided by the court and Parliament should not pre-judge the issue,” he said.
In the Rajya Sabha, soon after AIADMK member A William Rabi Bernard took oath, M Venkaih Naidu (BJP) stood up and wanted to know the fate of his party’s notice for suspension of Question Hour to discuss price rise.
That “notice has not been agreed to,” Chairman Hamid Ansari said even as BJP members raised the issue forcefully.
Naidu wanted to know what Prime Minister Manmohan Singh meant when he stated that there were skeletons in cupboard of opposition parties. He also said the rise in prices of essential commodities has severely impacted common man.
Other opposition parties too rose in their places raising issues like land acquisition.
“We would discuss all the subjects at an appropriate time … We will have a discussion on all issues. But please allow
Question Hour to proceed,” he pleaded with them.
But the opposition members were unrelenting and soon some BJP members trooped into the well. As the din continued, he adjourned the house till 2 p.m.
