Rajya Sabha disrupted repeatedly over Dalit atrocities

Referring to Congress members trooping near the speaker’s podium during the question hour and raising slogans against the Punjab government, Parliamentary Affairs Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu said an attempt was being made to defame an elected government.

As Congress members continued their protest, some BJP members approached them and offered roses.

Congress and the Bahujan Samaj Party today raised an uproar in the Rajya Sabha over the incidents of torture on Dalits in Punjab, demanding dismissal of the Akali Dal-BJP government in the state.

“Everyday, it is becoming a practice”.

As soon as the House met for the day, Speaker Sumitra Mahajan said she had disallowed notices of adjournment motions on different issues and the issues can be raised later.

When the house again met at 2 p.m., Congress leader Anand Sharma said a trust holding a function to unveil the statue of former Kerala chief minister R. Sankar, had invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy.

“Two gangs comprising Dalits and Sikhs clashed in Abohar, in which the limbs of a Dalit man were mutilated, whereas in the same clash, the limbs of a Sikh man were also mutilated, but they are not talking about it, as the Sikhs are not their vote bank”, said Harsimrat, who is a Shiromani Akali Dal Member of Parliament from Bathinda.

The Dalit killings in Punjab rocked the Rajya Sabha proceedings on Monday, with the opposition events demanding dismissal of the Punjab authorities.

The speaker asked Scindia to sit down, as Congress members gradually gathered near the podium.

Food Processing Minister and and SAD leader Harsimrat Kaur Badal speaks in the Lok Sabha. The House saw a walkout by Congress, Trinamool Congress and RJD over the issue. When Kaur, wanted to reply, the Speaker told her that it would put the reference to her family on record. With only eight working days left in the winter session, the fate of the good and service tax (GST) bill, real estate bill and other key labour reform legislations remain uncertain. “You are trying to destabilise the state”, she said.

Limbs of two men were chopped off on Saturday at a farmhouse allegedly owned by a leader of the ruling Akali Dal in Punjab, as per media reports.

One of the men, Bheem Tank, died on way to hospital after both his hands and legs were chopped off. Gurjant Singh, who lost one hand, was admitted to a hospital in Amritsar in a serious condition.