Opposition: No Parliament till Bansal, Ashwani quit

The opposition is going for the government's jugularA in the wake of the recent scams that have rocked the country. The BJP said it will not allow any bill to be passed in the Parliament untilA railway minister Pawan Kumar Bansal and law minister Ashwani Kumar resign or are removed. The government is keen to pass the National Food Security Bill and the Land Acquisition Bill but the opposition made it clear that this will not be cleared until the scam-tainted ministers quit their post. The BJP chaired a parliamentary party meeting presided by L K Advani and decided that party leaders would meet Speaker Meira Kumar against any move to rush through the legislations amid din. "There is no question of participating in the proceedings of Parliament till the two ministers -- Bansal and Kumar--resign or are removed...We want the National Food Security Bill and the Land Acquisition Bill to be passed after proper discussion. We will not allow their hasty passage without discussion amid din," Deputy Leader of BJP in Lok Sabha Gopinath Munde told reporters here. Bansal is in the eye of a storm after his nephew was arrested by the CBI in a bribery case involving key railway appointments, while Kumar is embroiled in the Coalgate controversy. Asked if the government tried to push through the key bills amid din, as attempted yesterday with regard to the Food Security Bill, Munde said his party will not allow this to happen and will meet the Speaker for measures against such a move. "Yesterday, the government tried to pass the Food Security Bill amid din in Lok Sabha. We discussed the issue in the BJP parliamentary party and decided that the party wanted the bills to be passed, but only after a proper discussion. We will not allow any attempt to pass the key bills in haste and in the din," Munde said. He said BJP remains steadfast on the issue of resignation of Bansal and Kumar. "If they give their resignation or Congress relieves them from the Cabinet, then we will pass both the bills in Parliament," he said. "The whole opposition is together (against passing of bills on this issue). If the government tries to push through the legislations amid the din, then we will meet the Speaker and seek measures against such a move as there is no such tradition. If the government shows 'dadagiri' (high- handedness), then we will oppose it," Munde said.