New Delhi: Alleged dubious land deals of Sonia Gandhi’s son-in-law Robert Vadra paralysed proceedings in Parliament on Tuesday with Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha witnessing two adjournments following uproar by BJP.
‘Congress ka haath, damaad ke saath’ (hand of Congress is with the son-in-law) chanted BJP members, seeking to draw the attention on the Vadra issue in the Lok Sabha.
This was met with counter slogans ‘Congress ka haath, janata ke saath, garib ke saath’ (hand of Congress is with the people and the poor) by ruling party members.
Taking an obvious dig at Vadra, Yashwant Sinha (BJP) said, “Though there are several business schools which teach models of making money, there is one highly connected person who did not go to any such school but has given a model where no investment is made but windfall gains of thousands of crores are made.”
The Vadra issue dominated both the Houses which saw other issues too, including Telangana with TDP members continuing to storm the Well, wearing shirts with slogan ‘Save Andhra Pradesh, Save Democracy’.
Soon after Lok Sabha assembled and obituary references were made, members of various parties were on their feet to raise different issues with the Left targetting Congress on the solar scam in Kerala and some others voicing concern over violence in Kishtwar and other areas in the Jammu region.
The Rajya Sabha also witnessed similar scenes, with the main opposition BJP forcing adjournment of the House till noon on the same issue, minutes after it assembled for the day.
BJP members shouted slogans which were countered by those from Congress.
As the din continued unabated, Chairman Hamid Ansari’s remarks whether members wished the House to become a “federation of anarchists” added fuel to the fire.
With BJP members shouting slogans seeking probe and reply from the government on the Vadra issue, members from the treasury benches too were on their feet.
“Every single rule in the rule book, every single etiquette is being violated…If the Hon’ble members wish the House to become a federation of anarchists, then it is a different matter,” Ansari remarked, amid strong protests from BJP members. He then adjourned the House till noon.
Uproarious scenes continued after the Upper House reassembled, with Rajiv Pratap Rudy (BJP) asking the Chair for his view on a Zero Hour notice to raise the Vadra issue.
“There is scam that has taken place. It has rocked the nation. It involves somebody very important,” Rudy said, with his party MPs rising in support.
Soon Congress members were on their feet raising counter slogans, forcing adjournment of the House again till 2 PM.
Lok Sabha witnessed uproar during Question Hour with opposition targeting the government on several issues including violence in Kishtwar, solar scam in Kerala as also the Vadra issue.
Congress members protested against BJP leader Yashwant Sinha’s remarks against Vadra, with Sanjay Nirupam walking into the Well to protest against the charge.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kamal Nath and his deputy Rajiv Shukla, both seated in the front row, were on their feet. BJP members countered them from their seats.
With the House in disorder, Speaker Meira Kumar adjourned it till noon. Though there was pandemonium on several matters, the Vadra issue led to its adjournment till noon.
When the House reassembled, the issue dominated with shouts and countershouts among opposition and ruling party members.
Earlier, Yogi Adityanath (BJP), who was asked by the Speaker to speak on violence in Kishtwar, said the government in Jammu and Kashmir has not woken up to the threat posed by separatist forces.
Left parties demanded resignation of Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and a judicial inquiry into solar scam.
Congress members joined issue with them and tried to shout them down.
Rajya Sabha earlier witnessed acrimonious exchanges between members of the treasury benches and the BJP, which continued to demand a discussion on Robert Vadra land deals.
BJP members shouted slogans which were countered by those from Congress.
Demanding a discussion on the issue, Deputy leader of BJP Ravi Shankar Prasad said, “It is a case of forgery of bank documents. Allow the issue to be raised.”
Deputy Chairman P J Kurien, however disallowed any such discussion saying, “Chairman has not permitted (a discussion). What can I do? I will have to adjourn the House if that is the behaviour. I have no other way.” He told Prasad to go by the rules, saying he being a senior leader also knows that the House runs by rules.
As slogan shouting between BJP members and the treasury benches continued, Kurien asked members to read out their Zero Hour mentions.
Amid the pandemonium, he called the name of BJP member Bhupendra Yadav to make his Zero Hour mention.
Yadav, in his mention, raised the issue of a member of an influential family, triggering uproar by Congress members. This led to adjournment of the House till 2 PM. (PTI)