Parliament disrupted, Congress-AIADMK lock horns

NEW DELHI, March 1: AIADMK members disrupted both Houses of Parliament on Tuesday demanding action against former Home minister P Chidambaram and his son Karti over corruption charges.

The protesting members shouted slogans in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha against the former Congress minister and his son. Soon after the Lok Sabha met for the day, AIADMK members trooped near the Speaker’s podium shouting “We want justice” and waving newspapers which claimed that Karti had invested in real estate across the world. Both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha were adjourned twice in the first hour before noon. Meanwhile, Congress members sought to know from Speaker Sumitra Mahajan the status of their notices of privilege motion against HRD Minister Smriti Irani.

The Congress leader in Lok Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, stood up to raise the issue but was shouted down by AIADMK members.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah idu tried to pacify the Tamil du MPs saying the issue could be raised later after giving proper notice.

Similar scenes were witnessed in the Rajya Sabha too, where AIADMK members disrupted proceedings by shouting slogans demanding action against the Chidambarams.

The House witnessed multiple adjournments before being adjourned for the day at 3.45 p.m. The Rajya Sabha could not conduct any meaningful business.

Slogans such as “Arrest Chidambaram and his son” and “Act against Chidambaram” echoed in the House as the Chairman and Deputy Chairman tried to conduct the proceedings amid the din.

Opposition leader Ghulam bi Azad said: “This is a deliberate attempt on the part of the AIADMK so that we don’t discuss the privilege motion.”

The chair kept on asking the protesting members to take their seats as the motion of thanks on President Prab Mukherjee’s speech needed to be taken up, but there was no stopping the sloganeering.

“Please sit down. We are going to take up an important issue,” Deputy Chairman PJ Kurien pleaded.

“You are behaving in the most irresponsible way. Why do you disturb proceedings in the House? It is murder of democracy, I am telling you,” he added in frustration.

The agitated AIADMK members refused to pay heed, leading to the House being adjourned until Wednesday morning. (IANS)