LS adjourned for day as opposition protests demanding debate on SIR; govt slams 'double standards'

New Delhi: The Lok Sabha was adjourned for the day on Tuesday due to protests by the opposition demanding a discussion on the ongoing voter roll revision in Bihar, even as the government accused them of practising "double standards" by asking for a debate on one hand and disrupting the House on the other.

Opposition members trooped to the Well of the Lok Sabha when the House reconvened at 2 pm after two earlier adjournments on the second day of the Monsoon session of Parliament demanding a discussion and roll back of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise initiated by the Election Commission in Bihar ahead of assembly polls scheduled for later this year.

Dilip Saikia, who was on the chair, made repeated requests to opposition MPs to go back to their places and allow the House to function.

As the protests continued, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju got up and condemned the opposition behaviour.

He said it was agreed at the Business Advisory Committee meeting on Monday that first Operation Sindoor will be taken up for discussion and the time for it had also been fixed.

"Only the rule under which discussion will take place will be decided. They come here carrying placards and violate the rules, I condemn this," Rijiju said.

"They are asking for a debate and we are ready for a debate but they are not allowing the House to function," he said, slamming the opposition.

These "double standards are wrong, on one hand they ask for debate and then create a ruckus like this," he said.

Rijiju said the government is ready but the opposition was wasting the time of Parliament.

He condemned the behaviour of the Congress and other parties.

Earlier, when the House re-convened at 12 noon, BJP member Jagdambika Pal, who was in the chair, urged the floor leaders of the opposition parties to ask their members to return to their seats and allow the House to function.

"The government is ready to discuss any issue which the Speaker allows as per the rules. I appeal to you to go back to your seats," Arjun Ram Meghwal, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs, said.

Pal also urged opposition members not to show placards and instead give in writing their demands at the meetings of the Business Advisory Committee.

As ruckus continued, Pal adjourned proceedings till 2 PM.

When the House met at 11 am, opposition MPs, including Congress, were on their feet, demanding discussion on the revision of electoral rolls in Bihar and Operation Sindoor.

Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan appealed to the opposition members to go back to their seats so that the House can take up questions related to farmers during the designated time of Question Hour.

Speaker Om Birla intervened and told the opposition MPs that sloganeering and showing placards lowered the dignity of the House. He later adjourned the House till 12 noon.

The House could not function on the first day of the session on Monday due to repeated adjournments following opposition protests over the demand of discussion on Operation Sindoor.

Under Operation Sindoor, armed forces attacked Pakistani terror sites and defence installations for three days beginning May 7 following the Pahalgam terror attack on April 22 in which 26 people were killed.