New Delhi: The BJP on Wednesday vowed to obstruct Parliament till Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh quit over faulty coal blocks allocation, in the worst showdown between the government and the main Opposition in two years.
The BJP refused to let Parliament function for a second straight day demanding that Manmohan Singh resign over a CAG report on coal blocks allocation.
“Parliamentary obstructionism is normally to be avoided, but in rare cases parties do adopt it,” Jaitley told Times Now channel, reflecting the aggressive mood in the main Opposition party.
The government as well as the Congress hit back at the BJP, accusing it of running away from a parliamentary debate, even as the first signs of a divide in opposition ranks surfaced.
The BJP-Congress crisis spread quickly to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the 2G spectrum scandal when five BJP members trooped out of a meeting, accusing Congress members of using “foul language”. The Congress denied the charge.
In what would be comforting to the Congress-led UPA, BJP’s ally Janata Dal-United (JD-U) indicated it was not happy with the paralysis of parliament.
“We are ready for discussion in parliament… The government should give a clarification over coal allocation,” JD-U’s Shivanand Tiwari said.
This prompted JD-U chief Sharad Yadav to say it was Tiwari’s “personal opinion” and that he was bound by whatever the BJP-led NDA decides.
The Congress defended Manmohan Singh.
“The prime minister is clean,” said Congress spokesman Rashid Alvi. He accused the BJP of routinely “disrupting parliament and asking for the resignation of ministers and the prime minister”.
Our Special Correspondent adds: Meanwhile, a group of Ministers and MPs of UPA including Union Minister of State for Water Resources Vincent H Pala met the Prime Minister and reiterated their unstinted support for him.
Pala and other ministers held an unscheduled meeting with Dr Manmohan Singh who already agreed to discuss the allocation of coal blocks issue on the floor of the House.
“The Prime Minister listened to us patiently and hoped that normalcy would return in Parliament shortly,” Pala told newsmen after the meeting.
“I also apprised Dr Singh on the latest situation in the region and our meetings with Madam Sonia Gandhi and others,” he said. (Agencies)