Heated exchanges between treasury and opposition benches took place in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday with Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar saying that the ruling party members were agitated with Congress' protest during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's speech, and will not allow them (the opposition) to speak.
Members of the Congress and Communist Party of India-Marxist kept protesting and shouting slogans from near the Speaker's podium as Modi replied to the Motion of Thanks to the President's Speech.
When the Lok Sabha met after a break following the reply, an angry Parliamentary Affairs Minister said if the Congress will not listen to the Leader of the House, the treasury bench members will not listen to their members.
This happened as the Lok Sabha was about to take up a debate on the Budget and the discussion was to be initiated by Congress' M. Veerappa Moily.
"If they do not listen to the leader of the House, the House will also not listen to any Congress leader. With this attitude you cannot do anything.
"We want to debate the Budget, our MPs are agitated and they will show their agitation," said Ananth Kumar.
Congress members were also seen standing on their seats, as Speaker Sumitra Mahajan tried to pacify both sides.
"No one can make you understand, and no one can make them understand," Mahajan said referring to the two sides which had locked horns.
Moily slammed the Minister for suggesting that the treasury benches would disrupt the House and said: "It is alright if the Minister for Parliamentary Affairs would like to run the House like this..."
To this, a visibly-angry Ananth Kumar retorted: "What about the opposition leader, what about the UPA Chairperson.
"What about the Congress party... what are you doing for the last one and a half hour when the Prime Minister was speaking."
Moily meanwhile questioned the Minister's body language, to which Mahajan replied: "Everyone's body language is like that."
Members from the treasury benches were meanwhile standing on their seats and shouting and protesting against the Congress.
While the Speaker said everyone was behaving in an unruly manner, Moily slammed the government, saying: "You have been elected in 2014 by creating confusion and disorder in the country and telling all lies... In one more year you will go (out of power)."
"Behaviour of these MPs is like Bhasmasura who want to put their hands on their heads to burn themselves down before 2019," he added, referring to the demon from Hindu mythology who was only vulnerable to the touch of his own hand and burnt himself to ashes after laying his own hand on his head.
"God alone can help them if there is a god," he said.
As BJP members continued to protest, Moily also questioned if the ruling party wanted the Budget passed or not.
"I don't know if Finance Minister (Arun Jaitley) sitting here wants to get the Budget passed or not. It is duty of government to cooperate to run the business of the house. Today it appears to me the ruling party do not want to cooperated with Finance Minister to get the bill passed," he said.
Moily them started his speech as ruling party MPs continued to howl, shout and raised slogans, including those slamming UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi.A
The House resumed normalcy after Moily finished his speech, and BJP's Ramesh Pokhriyal started speaking.
--IANS
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