Parliament proceedings stalled over Lalit Modi controversy

Question Hour in the Lok Sabha was washed out for the second consecutive day on Thursday as an aggressive opposition stalled the proceedings over the Lalit Modi controversy. As soon as the House assembled and took up the Question Hour, opposition Congress, TRS and Left members rushed to the Well raising slogans, forcing Speaker Sumitra Mahajan adjourned the House till noon.

Seeking to counter the opposition attack, BJP Chief Whip Arjun Ram Meghwal told the Chair about his notice of breach of privilege against Congress chief Sonia Gandhi’s son-in-law Robert Vadra. He alleged that Vadra has demeaned parliamentarians in his Facebook post. “He cannot do that…nobody can do that,” Meghwal shouted amid din.

There were protests when the Speaker informed that she had rejected the notices of adjournment moved by Mallikarjun Kharge, M Veerapa Moily and K C Venugopal (all Congress) and N K Premchandran (RSP) on the controversy allegedly involving the former IPL chief and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje. Mahajan also said similar notices by Mohd Salim, S P Dutta and M B Rajesh (all CPI-M) on the Vyapam scam, Dharmendra Yadav (SP) on farmers’ plight and A Sampath (CPI-M) on caste census have also been rejected.

Soon, Congress members sporting black ribbons stormed the Well holding placards with slogans like: ‘Bade Modi meherban, tohchhote Modi pehelwan’ (a Hindi idiom eaning that a small person is strong if supported by a powerful person) and ‘PM chuppitodo’ (PM, break your silence), ‘Modi ji 56 inch dikhao, Sushma, Raje ko turanthatao’ (Show your 56 inch chest by removing Swaraj and Raje).

The Speaker’s repeated warnings not to display placards were ignored as TRS members showed posters demanding a separate high court in Telangana. Sporting a black ribbon on his right arm, Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi was seen on the second row of opposition benches.

As some Congress members blacked the view of the Speaker by standing in front of the Treasury benches, a heated exchange of words took place between them and BJP members led by Union minister Rajiv Pratap Rudy. Soon after the House was adjourned, Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu was seen talking to Congress MP Deepender Singh Hooda.