Noisy protest by the Opposition over the June 21 Mantralaya fire that gutted three floors of the Secretariat led to early adjournment of proceedings for the day in both the state assembly and legislative council on Monday. Members of the Opposition made a strong demand for suspension of question hour to take up the debate on the Mantralaya fire on a priority basis. As the din grew, Speaker Dilip Walse-Patil adjourned the assembly till noon.
Then, as the House met and passed a motion condoling the death of the five victims of the inferno, the Opposition pressed for a debate under Rule 97, wherein voting is necessary. This, again, prompted Walse-Patil to adjourn the House, for 15 minutes.
After the house met again, leader of the Opposition Eknath Khadse said the public had a strong perception that the Mantralaya fire was part of a conspiracy to destroy crucial files pertaining to various scams involving senior ministers. The government should immediately take up a debate on the issue, he said.
Khadse’s proposal received support from Shiv Sena group leader Subhash Desai, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena group leader Bala Nandgaonkar and Peasants and Workers Party leader Ganpatrao Deshmukh. To this, chief minister Prithviraj Chavan said the government was ready for a debate and reply to all issues relating to the fire.
A belligerent Opposition stuck to its demand for resumption of the debate the very day. Slogan-shouting ensued, leading to adjournment of the House for the day.
The debate would now take place tomorrow. The Opposition might seek relaxation of Rule 97, whereby a debate may extend beyond two hours. They might not insist for voting.
In the state council, too, the Opposition was unanimous in its strong demand for a debate on the Mantralaya fire.
