Parliament adjourned for day over ‘quit PM’ demands

New Delhi  :  Both houses of parliament were repeatedly disrupted before being adjourned for the day Tuesday as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) noisily demanded Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s resignation.

The Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha were adjourned for the day without transacting much business. While the Lok Sabha was adjourned for the day a little after noon, the Rajya Sabha was adjourned for the day at 2 p.m.

While the houses were finally adjourned for the day over the BJP’s demand for the prime minister’s resignation over coal block allocations, other issues like China and grants for West Bengal were also taken up.

Both houses will now meet Thursday as Wednesday is a holiday for Mahavir Jayanti.

The Lok Sabha was first adjourned soon after it assembled when Samajwadi Party (SP) members gathered near the speaker’s podium to protest reports of Chinese incursion in the Ladakh region.

Around 15-20 Chinese soldiers have reportedly been stationed at a remote camp some 10 km inside the Indian territory in the northern part of Ladakh since April 15.

China has denied that its troops have crossed into Indian territory. Military commanders at the Brigadier-level from the two sides met last week but failed to break the deadlock.

Trinamool Congress MPs were also seen gathering near the Speaker’s podium to press for their demand for a special package for West Bengal.

When Speaker Meira Kumar failed to restore order, she adjourned the house till noon.

When the house reassembled, BJP members started demanding Manmohan Singh’s resignation over the standing committee’s report on coal block allocation.

Following this, AIADMK’s M. Thambidurai, who was in the chair, adjourned the house for the day.

The Rajya Sabha witnessed similar scenes, as BJP members came near the Chairman’s podium and raised slogans demanding the prime minister’s resignation.

They also demanded the removal of Law Minister Ashwani Kumar.

The upper house was first adjourned till noon, then till 2 p.m., and finally, for the day.

Earlier, as soon as the upper house met for the day, Ansari had conveyed the good wishes of the house to the elected representatives of panchayati raj institutions to mark Panchayati Raj Divas April 24.

“The impact of the 73rd amendment in rural India is very much visible today as it has devolved power to the people at village level,” Ansari said.