Don't turn Lok Sabha into municipal corporation: Speaker tells MPs as BJP, TMC members spar

The verbal clash broke out after BJP MP Saumitra Khan raised the topic of dearness allowance payment for employees of Bengal government

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Monday asked members to not turn Parliament's Lower House into a "municipal corporation" as BJP and TMC MPs locked horns over an issue related to West Bengal government employees.

The verbal clash broke out after Saumitra Khan, an MP from the ruling BJP, raised during the Question Hour the issue of dearness allowance payment to employees of the West Bengal government and asked Union Minister for Labour and Employment Bhupender Yadav if the Centre can address the matter.

"Employees of the West Bengal government are sitting on a hunger strike… They are not getting their dearness allowance," Khan said, asking Yadav "is there any provision under which the central government can directly (address the issue)?"

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Trinamool Congress (TMC) member Kalyan Banerjee immediately objected to Khan's raising the issue and questioned its relevance in Lok Sabha.

The BJP MP also sought to know from the minister how many workers from West Bengal are registered on the eShram portal, a national database of unorganised workers created by the Centre.

Replying to Khan's question, Yadav said over 2.57 crore workers from West Bengal are registered on the portal. However, the minister did not say anything on the issue of state government employees raised by him.

"I will give a reply on the remaining subject after taking cognisance of that," Yadav said.

Objecting to Khan's question, Banerjee said, "We are sitting here, (but) it doesn't mean whatever they want they can speak here. Relevancy is required. He is talking about the payment of the dearness allowance of state government employees and this doesn't have any connection with the question itself."

As the BJP member sought to counter Banerjee, an exchange of words broke out between TMC and BJP MPs, prompting Lok Sabha Speaker Birla to intervene. "Don't discuss among yourselves... Don't turn it into a municipal corporation," Birla said, asking members to stop arguing with each other.