The Hindu : National : Speaker-NDA row may end

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Friday, Dec 08, 2006
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Speaker-NDA row may end

Special Correspondent

Never intended any insult: Somnath

NEW DELHI : After meetings in the morning and evening on Thursday, Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee and National Democratic Alliance (NDA) leaders seemed to be moving towards a rapprochement, notwithstanding an ugly scene in the House on Thursday.

Mr. Chatterjee invited NDA leaders for a meeting after receiving a message through the Government on Wednesday evening that they might be willing to talk. A meeting took place at 10 a.m. but it was adjourned inconclusively. They met again at 5 p.m., after which BJP's deputy leader in House V.K. Malhotra told reporters that the NDA would meet on Friday morning and review its decision not to attend meetings called by the Speaker.

Mr. Malhotra hinted that things had moved in the positive direction after the Speaker agreed to take on board the NDA's disapproval of government business being pushed through the din and disorder in the House.

At the same time, Mr. Chattterjee is believed to have strongly rejected the NDA's suggestion that he was biased. Apparently, he told them that the parliamentary records do not dare out their charge. Some NDA leaders also told him that they resented his "schoolmasterly" approach and felt it was insulting. Mr. Chatterjee reportedly made it plain that he never intended to insult anyone, let alone Members of Parliament. He reiterated that he always tried his best to accommodate the Opposition views and gave it every opportunity to have its say in the House.

During the day, the Lok Sabha witnessed a heated exchange between BJP member Kharabela Swain and the Speaker over supplementary questions. As the member accused him of not giving the Opposition enough chance to place supplementaries during question hour, he invited the Leader of the Opposition to go through the records and ascertain for himself whether there was a bias.

Mr. Malhotra and senior BJP leaders had a tough time in pacifying Mr. Swain, as the backbenchers in the Opposition ranks egged him on.

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