In an unexpected development, 78 Members of Parliament (MPs), including both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha members, were suspended temporarily for staging protests demanding a statement from Union Home Minister Amit Shah regarding the security breach in Parliament last week. Fourteen MPs had previously been suspended for the same reason, bringing the total number of suspended MPs in this session to 92.
In the Lok Sabha, 30 MPs were suspended for the remainder of the session, while three were suspended until the privileges committee submits a report on their conduct. In the Rajya Sabha, 35 members were suspended for the rest of the session, and 11 were suspended until a report is provided by the privileges panel. Earlier, Rajya Sabha MP Derek O’Brien had been suspended after demanding a discussion on the breach.
The list of suspended MPs from the Lok Sabha includes Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, Congress’s leader in Lok Sabha, Gaurav Gogoi, deputy leader of the party in the House, Trinamool MPs Kalyan Banerjee, Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, Saugata Ray, and Satabdi Roy, as well as DMK members A Raja and Dayanidhi Maran.
In the Rajya Sabha, suspended members include Congress’s Jairam Ramesh and Randeep Singh Surjewala, DMK’s Kanimozhi, and RJD’s Manoj Kumar Jha.
Mr. Chowdhury, speaking to the media, accused the government of behaving in a dictatorial manner and treating Parliament as the BJP headquarters. He expressed disappointment that the government was avoiding discussions in Parliament.
Mr. Gogoi claimed that the BJP government is suppressing the Opposition and asserted that the Home Minister is avoiding taking responsibility for the significant security breach. He stated that they would continue their protest outside Lok Sabha.
Amid the chaos in the Rajya Sabha, Vice-President and Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar expressed concern, stating, “Numerous members are deliberately ignoring the bench. The House isn’t functioning due to disruption.”
Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge expressed concern about an Opposition-less Parliament, fearing that the government could now push through important pending legislation without proper debate.
Previously, Congress leader Jairam Ramesh took to social media, stating that the Opposition is protesting due to the government’s refusal to address their demand for a statement by the Home Minister.
In his first comments on the security breach, Prime Minister Narendra Modi acknowledged its seriousness and called for a detailed investigation. Regarding the Opposition’s demand for the Home Minister’s statement, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla maintained that security inside the House falls under the secretariat’s purview and would not let the Centre interfere.
Shocking scenes unfolded in the Lok Sabha chamber on Wednesday when two intruders jumped from office to office and scattered colored papers from bags. Their accomplice staged a similar protest outside Parliament. They informed investigators that their goal was to draw attention to issues in Manipur, separatism, and farmers’ problems. Six people have been arrested in connection with the case, and Delhi Police have invoked the stringent anti-terror law, Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, against the intruders.
