JOIN USThe Rajya Sabha on Monday witnessed commotion over separatist leader Masrat Alam's release in Jammu and Kashmir, with several members even calling it a compromise with national security.
Despite assurances from Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Leader of the House Arun Jaitley, the opposition members created a ruckus to press for their demand that Prime Minister Narendra Modi make a statement on the issue.
Modi was present in the upper house when Rajnath Singh gave a clarification on his statement over Alam's release, and had earlier spoken on the issue in the Lok Sabha.
While opposition members slammed the government for "undermining" the house as the prime minister did not speak, the government said the opposition did not ask for the statement while the prime minister was there.
Jaitley said it was an attempt to stall other business in the house, which was scheduled to take up the mines and minerals bill.
The issue was raised in the morning by Congress leader Anand Sharma, following which Jaitley assured that the government would not compromise on national security.
However, Congress members trooped near the chairman's podium, forcing a brief adjournment.
Raising the issue during Zero Hour, Sharma said: "Separatist in the jail were set free (in Jammu and Kashmir) and the state administration is encouraging it."
Trinamool Congress leader Derek O'Brien said it was a compromise with national security.
"The limited point here is security of the nation has been compromised. Why it has been compromised, we want to know."
"It is pretty obvious that selfish convenience of politics has won over conviction. The government needs to come clear on it," he said.
Peoples Democratic Party member Mir Mohammad Fayaz, meanwhile, questioned why the Congress did not have problem when Yasin Malik was released during the tenure of a
PDP-Congress coalition government in Jammu and Kashmir.
"When PDP-Congress government was in power, Yasin Malik was released. Then there was no ruckus," Fayaz remarked.
"People of Kashmir want peace. During NDA government of Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the people of Kashmir had come out and voted; now they have polled 70 percent votes. Do these people not want peace in Jammu and Kashmir," he wondered.
Making a statement later, the home minister said the government was not satisfied with the clarifications of the Jammu and Kashmir government on the release of separatist leader Masrat Alam and has sought a fresh report from it.
"I am happy the whole house is concerned. If I can understand their feeling, the whole house agrees that Jammu and Kashmir is an integral part of India, and will always be," he said.
"I want to assure the house, and I am speaking on behalf of the prime minister, we will not allow any one to disintegrate the nation, howsoever big the power may be," the home minister added.
Soon after the home minister's speech, the upper house saw members seeking clarifications from External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's comments, justifying shooting of Indian fishermen.
However, when the clarifications were over, Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad asked why the prime minister spoke on the issue in Lok Sabha, but not in the upper house.
"He spoke in the other house but did not speak here. We would have demanded that he speak, but we did not know he has spoken in the other house," Azad said.
Responding to this, Jaitley said: "When clarifications were being sought the prime minister was present throughout... he even sat beyond that debate in case any one had any clarifications to ask."
"Two hours later, for some other collateral reasons to say prime minister did not intervene... My appeal to all my colleagues in the opposition is that the coal ordinance and mine and mineral ordinance are two important pieces of legislation where the entire money is going to the states and particularly to states that have lot of tribal population," he said.
Congress members, however, trooped near the chairman's podium, raising slogans accusing the government of undermining Rajya Sabha, the house of elders.
Amid the ruckus, the upper house saw a brief adjournment, before being adjourned for the day.