Lok Sabha proceedings were adjourned till 2 pm on Monday amid continued protests by opposition members who demanded a statement from Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the ethnic violence in Manipur. Photos/PTI
As the Lok Sabha reconvened at 12 noon after an earlier adjournment, sloganeering from the opposition benches continued even as the government transacted some legislative business, with three bills introduced and one withdrawn amid the din.
As soon as the House met at 11 am, opposition members from the Congress, DMK, Left parties and others were on their feet. Speaker Om Birla allowed Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury to speak. Chowdhury said Modi should make a suo-motu statement on the floor of the House on the violence in Manipur.
Birla said the House is ready for a discussion on the Manipur violence and the debate could be started after 12 noon as the time fixed for the Question Hour from 11 am should not be disturbed as many important issues are raised by the members during this period for a reply from the government. "The whole House is ready for the discussion and the government will reply to the debate too. But you will not decide who will reply to the debate," the speaker said.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi also said the government is ready for a discussion, while pointing out that it is the opposition that is disrupting the proceedings and running away from a debate. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who is also the deputy leader of the Lok Sabha, reiterated his statement made on Friday that the government is ready for a discussion on the Manipur violence.
The Manipur violence rocked the proceedings in both Houses of Parliament on the first two days of the Monsoon session on Thursday and Friday, with the opposition demanding a statement from the prime minister and a discussion on the situation in the strife-torn northeastern state.
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