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Pandemonium in M.P. Assembly

Photo: A. M. Faruqui

Chaos: BJP MLAs demonstrating at the State Assembly in Bhopal on Wednesday demanding that the nomination of Independent candidate Vivek Tankha for the Rajya Sabha election be rejected.

BHOPAL: There was pandemonium in the Madhya Pradesh Assembly on Wednesday when all the ruling BJP and opposition Congress MLAs stood up during Question Hour hurling charges against each other over Samajwadi Party MLA Kishore Samrite’s allegation on Tuesday night that he was paid Rs.10 lakh in cash to ensure his support for a Congress-backed Rajya Sabha candidate.

As the members were up on their feet shouting slogans, Speaker Ishwardas Rohani adjourned the House till 11-30 a.m. When the House re-assembled, members of both sides continued with their attack but the Speaker managed to convince the BJP ones to take their seats. However, as the Congress members led by Opposition leader Jamuna Devi refused to yield, the Speaker reprimanded them.

The Congress members were heard shouting that the “pay-off” episode, shown by prominent television channels and widely covered by local newspapers, was stage-managed by the BJP. This triggered strong protests from State Ministers Kailash Vijayvargiya, Anup Mishra and Narottam Mishra.

At this juncture, the Speaker chose to rush through the official business and in less than 15 minutes the entire business listed for the last day of the Budget session was completed. Meanwhile, all Congress members remained on their feet shouting relentlessly despite repeated efforts by the Speaker to maintain order. Repeatedly Mr. Rohani turned to the Congress side saying, “You are murdering democracy.” The Speaker expunged most of what the Congress MLAs were saying.

The Speaker also allowed Mr. Samrite, the Samajwadi Party MLA, to table a complaint in the House. He informed the members that Mr. Samrite had stated in his complaint that there was a threat to his life from the Congress and asked Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan to provide him security cover. Mr. Chauhan responded by assuring the Speaker that he would be fully protected. Even as the Congress members continued to protest, the House was adjourned sine die.

Speaking to media persons later, State BJP chief Narendra Singh Tomar said he was not surprised when he learnt through the media about the “pay-off” allegation. The Congress had indulged in horse trading even earlier, he charged. He condemned the latest episode and said the BJP would burn Ms. Jamuna Devi’s effigies and take the issue to the people.

Asked whether the State Government would hand over this case to the CBI, Mr. Tomar said the State police were competent.

Samajwadi Party leader Narayan Tripathi, flanked by Ms. Jamuna Devi, Ramlakhan Sharma (CPI-M) and other MLAs, also addressed the journalists. He said that the alleged pay-off was a conspiracy hatched by the BJP and the Chief Minister after his party had issued a whip in support of Vivek Tankha, the Congress-backed independent candidate for the Rajya Sabha election from the State. After the whip had been issued there was no reason why any effort should have been made by Mr. Tankha or the Congress to garner votes, he added.

Mr. Tripathi said Mr. Samrite’s allegation was an act of indiscipline and there would be disciplinary action against him. He even accused him of hobnobbing with the BJP.

Ms. Jamuna Devi alleged that the Chief Minister was involved in the conspiracy as Mr. Tankha was handling the case linked with the alleged dumper scam. Congress MLA Rajendra Singh, who has been accused of sending the “pay-off” amount to Mr. Samrite on Tuesday night, said the allegation was without any basis as all Samajwadi Party MLAs were tied to the party whip.

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Pandemonium in M.P. Assembly

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