Parliament: Congress protests over Uttarakhand, disrupt Rajya Sabha again

New Delhi: Slogan-shouting Congress members on Tuesday forced the adjournment of the Rajya Sabha till noon after the government rejected their demand for a discussion on a motion on dismissal of the party's government there. Congress members trooped into the Well of the House raising slogans against the Government at the centre and Prime Minister Narendra Modi after Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, the leader of the House, said no discussion other than on proclamation of President Rule in Uttarakhand would take place. Justifying imposition of central rule in the state, Jaitley said the “real breakdown of constitutional machinery” happened in Uttarakhand when the presiding officer (Speaker) ”ignored” the vote of 35 out of 67 members against the appropriation bill to declare it passed.

Deputy Chairman P.J. Kurien's pleading that the Chair was in favour of a discussion and the protestors should allow the House to function went unheeded, forcing him to adjourn the proceedings till noon. Congress leaders Anand Sharma and Pramod Tiwari gave notices under rule 267 seeking suspension of business to take up discussion on use of Article 356 by the Centre to dismiss a democratically elected government in Uttrakhand. While Naresh Agrawal of the Samajwadi Party also gave notice under same rule for discussion on the issue, Mayawati, the Bahujan Samaj Party leader, supported the demand for suspension of business to take up the debate. Jaitley said it had never happened in the history of independent India that a presiding officer of a state assembly has converted majority into minority and vice versa. ”This is the real breakdown of constitutional machinery,” he said. He said 35 out of the 67 members in Uttarakhand assembly voted against the appropriation bill but the presiding officer came to conclusion that the bill has been passed. “That is breakdown of constitutional machinery.” The minister said discussion will take place when the proclamation for President's Rule is placed before the House. ”There is no procedure of having pre-proclamation discussion,” he said.