No business in LS for ninth day

Cutting across party lines, parliamentarians stalled business in the Lok Sabha for the ninth consecutive day of the winter session, creating ruckus over a number of issues,  including clearance for Telangana state and alleged sexual harassment of a law intern by retired Supreme Court Judge A K Ganguly.

This prompted Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar to adjourn the House for the day in the afternoon after tabling of various government reports, including reports of parliamentary standing committees.

A constitutional amendment Bill for inclusion of Narikoravan, grouped with Kurivikkaran community from Tamil Nadu, as well as Dhanuhar and Dhanuwar communities from Chhattisgarh in the list of scheduled tribes was also introduced by Tribal Affairs Minister V Kishore Chandra Deo, amid a din.

Disruptions were the order of the day in the Lower House soon after it assembled. Members of Congress, YSR Congress and Telugu Desam Party were up on their feet, holding up placards in protest against the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh. Samajwadi Party members stormed the well raising the issue of repeated Chinese incursion into Indian territory and demanded  concrete action by the government.

When the members were  unrelenting, Speaker Meira Kumar adjourned the House for an hour.

After the House reassembled at noon, the agitating members again went on the offensive. Members of Trinamool Congress, led by Sudip Bandopadhyay, demanded ouster of Justice Ganguly from the post of West Bengal Human Rights Commission chief.

Members from Seemandhra region of AP, including those of Congress, TDP and YSR Congress, trooped to the well shouting slogans to ‘save democracy’ and ‘not to divide Andhra Pradesh’. YSR Congress leader Jaganmohan Reddy staged a dharna against creation of separate state of Telangana.

Biju Janata Dal members were seen supporting notices given for a no-confidence motion against the government by Seemandhra MPs. The motion, however, could not be taken up as the House was adjourned for the day.