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LS adjourned twice as Opposition questions govt, seeks Pradhan’s resignation
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav said the issue was not about any political party but about the students and youth of India
The Lok Sabha was adjourned twice within an hour as the Opposition on Wednesday questioned the police action against the protesting students and reiterated the demand for Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation over examination irregularities. Congress leader KC Venugopal demanded accountability and asked Pradhan to resign
Speaker Om Birla appealed for order when the House reconvened at 11am. He said he was open to a discussion after Question Hour. Birla said that members would get as much time as they needed. “But the discussion only happens after Question Hour,” he said, urging members to submit a notice if they wanted to raise the matter. Birla adjourned the House until noon amid sloganeering.
The Opposition again protested at noon with Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav saying the issue was not about any political party. “This is about the students and youth of India,” he said. He warned that if their voices kept being ignored in Parliament, the Opposition would take the fight back to the streets.
Yadav said the sit-in outside Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s residence on Tuesday happened because the issue was not being heard in the House. He alleged that female students were mistreated during Monday’s police action and that their clothes were torn. “Is this how we will treat our youth and our girls?”
Yadav questioned why Modi had stayed silent on the matter. “If he can speak on other issues, why not on this?” he asked as the Lok Sabha was adjourned again until 2pm amid continuing protests.
Parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju earlier said the government was ready for a discussion in the House.
Most Opposition members were dressed in black as a mark of protest against the government over the police action two days earlier.
Activist Sonam Wangchuk’s hunger strike and forcible removal from Delhi’s Jantar Mantar galvanised the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protest movement against paper leaks and exam irregularities. On Monday, tens of thousands of agitators marched to Parliament demanding Pradhan’s resignation, making it the largest public protest in Modi’s third term.
On Tuesday, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi led an unprecedented protest outside Modi’s residence, even as Opposition leaders visited Jantar Mantar to back agitating students. The protest continued for about three-and-a-half hours before the protesting leaders were forcibly dragged away and bundled into buses.
