TMC, Congress stage walkout in Tripura Assembly

Agartala: Trinamool Congress and Congress MLAs on Friday staged a noisy walkout from the Tripura Assembly separately on different issues.
TMC members walked out when Speaker Ramendra Debnath refused to admit an adjournment over Chief Minister Manik Sarkar’s alleged anti-national remarks. During the Zero Hour, TMC leader Sudip Roy Barman stood up and pressed for an adjournment to discuss Sarkar’s comment made at a business seminar here on Thursday.
Barman said the Chief Minister’s comment that India always showed “big brotherly attitude” towards its neighbouring countries was “inimical to national interest”.
A heated exchange of words between the Treasury and the TMC benches followed and the Chief Minister himself said he had not said anything inimical to national interest.
“I have said our External Affairs ministry should have such an attitude that we can maintain a good relation with our neighbouring countries.
We want good neighbours. As an Indian, it is my right,” Sarkar said. But the barbs continued to fly as TMC members called the Treasury bench “agents of China and Pakistan”, while the Left MLAs described Trinamool Congress as “agent of BJP”.
As Speaker Ramendra Debnath did not adjourn the House, all six members of Trinamool Legislature Party (TLP) staged a noisy walkout and did not return to the House for the rest of the day.
Similarly, the three Congress MLAs also walked out in protest against the Speaker’s refusal to allow a discussion on the events that led to violence on January 23 at Agartala after the Indigenous People’s Front of Tripura (IPFT) brought out a procession.
The Speaker cited rules and business of the House to reject the demand. Congress leader Ratanlal Nath said the party’s demand for a CBI inquiry into the incident and discussion in the House was rejected in a “very undemocratic manner” and the party members staged a walkout. (PTI)