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Informist, Thursday, Dec. 5, 2024

 

NEW DELHI – After two days of calm, trouble-free proceedings, the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha witnessed unscheduled adjournments Thursday amid protests by opposition parties relating to the bribery and fraud charges against business tycoon Gautam Adani and the violence in Uttar Pradesh's Sambhal district and Manipur. The Congress and other opposition parties demanded a discussion on the allegations against Adani and his indictment in the US. The Adani group has called the allegations baseless.

 

Proceedings in the Lok Sabha were adjourned three times as the opposition parties protested against Bharatiya Janata Party lawmaker Nishikant Dubey’s remarks linking Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi and a billionaire foreign investor. Dubey accused the Congress and other opposition parties of seeking to derail India’s "success story" under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi based on reports in a publication with alleged links to the billionaire.

 

Congress members objected strongly to the remarks and flagged the issue to Speaker Om Birla in his chamber, demanding an apology from Dubey. The Opposition also reiterated its demand to set up a joint parliamentary committee to probe the allegations against Adani. It also raised the issue of violence in Sambhal and Manipur.

 

"Agents of Adani have been given only one task--to defame and abuse those who expose their mega-corruption," Congress General Secretary K.C. Venugopal said. "From the day Rahul Gandhi stood against the corruption of Adani, the agents of Adani have started to abuse Rahul Gandhi. Come what may, Rahul Gandhi will keep raising these issues. The speaker allowed Dubey to speak for 10 minutes. This kind of derogatory remark is never used. We are pained. We do not tolerate such objectionable words against Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi."

 

When the Lok Sabha reconvened after lunch hour, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju criticised the Congress for "unruly behaviour". "Congress has started a fashion show with these types of clothes in the House," he remarked, referring to the protest by opposition members in the Parliament complex earlier in the day sporting black jackets with stickers saying "Modi Adani ek hain. Adani safe hai."

 

Officiating speaker Jagdambika Pal urged the members to let Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw make his statement on the Railways (Amendment) Bill, 2024. But the opposition members did not relent, and the House was adjourned for the day.

 

The Rajya Sabha proceedings also witnessed an unscheduled adjournment in the morning after opposition members protested against Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar allowing BJP member Sudhanshu Trivedi to speak beyond the prescribed time limit during Zero Hour. Trivedi made a statement similar to that of Dubey in the Lok Sabha, alleging that there was foreign influence at play to undermine BJP rule. He cited, among others, the Hindenburg Research report on the Adani Group's alleged financial machinations.

 

In the morning, members of the Congress and many other opposition parties wore black jackets with stickers targeting the prime minister and his ties with Adani, and raised slogans demanding a joint parliamentary probe into the charges against the group. "Prime Minister Modi cannot get an investigation done against Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani as it would amount to getting a probe done against himself," Rahul Gandhi said.

 

The first week of the Winter Session was washed out in the face of Opposition protests on multiple issues. The week-long deadlock ended Monday after an all-party meeting convened by Speaker Birla, where the Opposition agreed to cooperate with the government for the smooth functioning of the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha after the government agreed to a discussion on the Constitution next week. The Winter Session is scheduled to end on Dec. 20.  End

 

Reported by Kuldeep Singh

Edited by Rajeev Pai

 

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