Parliament collapses again

Debate on price rise was the main casualty

Meanwhile, the Telangana Rashtriya Samiti (TRS) members, backed by Congress MPs, also disrupted proceedings demanding a separate state of Telangana.

The main opposition BJP said it was agreed that the Left would move an adjournment motion on price rise, while it (BJP) would take up the issue of black money through another adjournment motion.

Leader of the Opposition Sushma Swaraj, giving the sequence of events, said in the Speaker’s room, it was agreed in the presence of finance minister Pranab Mukherjee, parliamentary affairs minister Pawan Kumar Bansal, SP leader Mulayam Singh Yadav, Left MPs Basudeb Acharia and Gurudas Dasgupta that a discussion on price rise would commence at 2 pm.

Swaraj said at the given time, TRS MPs were seen agitating with no cabinet minister present in the house to pacify them. It was a failure of floor coordination from the ruling side which “does not want to run the house”, she said.

The senior BJP leader said to facilitate smooth proceedings, her party agreed to revise the subject of the adjournment motion from a discussion on “the failure of government” to “the situation arising out of the high price rise”.

The CPM, however, accused the BJP of helping the government to escape a vote in Parliament on the issue of price rise. The angry Left charged the main opposition of resorting to such tactics even in the past.

‘Sort of understanding’

“In the past three sessions, we have found that Congress and the main opposition party have come to some sort of an understanding repeatedly, bypassing the rest of Parliament and political parties,” senior CPI (M) leader Sitaram Yechury told newspersons.

As soon as the Lok Sabha assembled for the day, members of Bahujan Samaj Party, Rashtriya Janata Dal, Biju Janata Dal and some from the ruling Congress belonging to Telangana region, raised slogans along with TRS in support of their individual demands, forcing adjournment of the lower house till noon.

When the House reassembled, K Chandrashekhar Rao and Vijayashanti of  TRS came to the well and staged a sit-in demanding separate Telangana state. They were supported by some Congress members from the region who sought introduction of a bill providing for carving out a separate state of Telangana out of Andhra Pradesh.

BSP and RJD members shouted slogans demanding a debate on price rise under rules which necessitate voting, while members of the BJD wanted special status for flood-ravaged Odisha. BSP members then staged a walkout.