SP, BSP walk out of Lok Sabha

The Samajwadi Party (SP) and the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) Wednesday walked out of the Lok Sabha before voting in the house on foreign investment in multi-brand retail.

"This government is anti-farmer," SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav said.

With the two parties walking out, the halfway mark in the house would come down.

"Five crore people in retail trade will be destroyed. This decision has ignored the interests of 20 crore farmers and their families. The decision on FDI was taken under pressure of foreign companies. This is the reason the party boycotted it," Mulayam Singh said.

Asked whether the SP's move can help the government in mustering the required numbers, he said: "This is not about helping or harming the government. The whole party and MPs had decided to stage a walkout. This was decided by the party and the SP will continue to oppose every wrong decision of the government."

Both parties support the ruling UPA from outside.