NEW DELHI: PM Narendra Modi was unable to make a statement in Lok Sabha on the plans to celebrate India’s 75th year of independence due to disruptions, parliamentary affairs minister Pralhad Joshi said on Wednesday even as the two Houses failed to function due to opposition’s protests over rise in fuel prices and farm laws.
Joshi said Modi wanted to make a statement in Lok Sabha on ‘Azadi ka Amrut Mahotsav’ but was not able to do so due to disruptions. The PM will launch the programme from Gujarat on March 12 and also flag off a 21-day ‘Dandi March’ from Sabarmati Ashram. “The PM wants to make a statement in the House but there is no consensus, though the Speaker has given permission.
Whenever there is consensus in the House, the PM will make a statement,” Joshi said in Lok Sabha.
Government sources said earlier, Speaker Om Birla had chaired a meeting of floor leaders to end the logjam and opposition parties barring Congress were amenable. “Congress party continued disruptive tactics. They were requested for a second time to allow peaceful proceedings for just five minutes so that a statement can be given by the PM. They did not relent,” a source said.
The opposition’s protests continued for the third day in arow even as Lok Sabha took up a few questions during question hour and passed a bill amid the din, and also heard members’ concerns over death of Dadra and Nagar Haveli MP Mohan Delkar.
Raising Delkar’s suicide, members demanded action against Dadra and Nagar Haveli bureaucrats, alleging that they forced the MP to take the extreme step.
Lok Sabha tried to take up the demand for grants for railways in the second half but BJP MP Ramkripal Yadav’s speech was marred by protests and the House was adjourned till Monday.
The story was the same in Rajya Sabha with opposition parties demanding rollback of the three farm laws and disrupting proceedings, prompting chairman M Venkaiah Naidu to say that “disruptions” don’t help the cause of farmers, but “discussions do”. Rejecting the demand for adiscussion on farm laws, he said the House had a detailed discussion on the issue in February and there would be ample opportunities during the working of the agriculture ministry.