Kharge Urges Dhankhar To Revoke Rajya Sabha Suspension Of TMC's Derek O'Brien

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge wrote a letter to Rajya Sabha Chariman Jagdeep Dhankhar urging him to revoke TMC MP Derek O'Brien's suspension.

TMC MP Derek O'Brien was suspended from Rajya Sabha on December 14

Source : PTI

Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha and Congress national president Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday urged Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar to revoke the suspension of Trinamool Congress MP Derek O’Brien. The TMC MP was suspended on Thursday last week for the remaining winter session on charges of obstructing the proceedings of the House. 

In his letter Kharge backed Derek saying that the latter was just trying to attract the Chairman’s attention to raise the demand by Opposition leaders for a statement by Union home minister Amit Shah on the Parliament security breach incident. 

“All he was trying to do was to attract your attention so as to raise the collective demand of INDIA Parties for a statement by the Minister of Home Affairs on the shocking incident that took place in Lok Sabha on 13th December 2023,” Kharge said in the letter. 

Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Malliakrjun Kharge writes to Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar to revoke the suspension of TMC MP Derek O'Brien pic.twitter.com/WU6lUv4yZw

— ANI (@ANI) December 18, 2023

He further wrote: “These are perfectly legitimate demands. It is a breach of Parliamentary traditions and conventions that the Minister of Home Affairs can speak about the events of 13th December 2023 at a media function but refuses to say anything about in form of a statement in Parliament when the Parliament itself is in session.” 

Derek was suspended from the Upper House of the Parliament after Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar asked him to leave the House immediately for disorderly conduct. 

According to Dhankhar, the TMC MP had entered the well of the House, shouted slogans and disrupted the proceedings of the House as the opposition raised the issue of yesterday's security breach incident.

The Rajya Sabha Chairman accused Derek of violating the directions of the chair and disrupting the proceedings of the House. 

He then allowed Leader of the House Piyush Goyal to move a motion in this regard which was adopted with a voice vote and the chairman announced that Derek stands suspended from the House for the remainder of the winter session.