The Monsoon session of the 14th Rajasthan Assembly was on Friday adjourned sine die after the House passed six bills amidst protests by the Opposition.
The session that lasted for three days witnessed repeated adjournments and massive uproar over fuel price hike, crop loan waiver, unemployment, cane charging on Youth Congress activists and allegations that the government was evading tough questions.
Throughout the session on Friday, the Congress legislators stayed in the well and raised anti-government slogans, forcing Speaker Kailash Meghwal to adjourn the House twice during pre-lunch session.
The House was adjourned first for 45 minutes till 12 noon during Question Hour. When the members reassembled during Zero Hour, it was adjourned again till 2 pm as Opposition members trooped into the well.
As soon as the Question Hour began, Leader of Opposition Rameshwar Dudi and Congress deputy whip Govind Singh Dotasara raised the issues of rising fuel prices and Thursday's police action on Youth Congress workers while they were protesting against alleged corruption in the Rafale deal and rising unemployment.
Dotasara said the police used force to disperse the peaceful protest as the Congress legislators trooped into the well of the House and shouted slogans against the government.
The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) accused the Congress of deliberately disrupting the Question Hour.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Rajendra Rathore said the people of the state were watching the conduct of the Opposition while education Minister Kiran Maheshwari said the government wanted to answer the members' questions but the Congress did not want the House to function.
The Speaker also appealed to the members to go back to their seats but, when they did not heed to the request, he adjourned the proceedings.
As the members reassembled for Zero Hour, Congress legislators again trooped into the well after Meghwal refused to accept their adjournment motion on crop loan-waiver.
Both the ruling and opposition members exchanged barbs over the issue which led to pandemonium for almost 30 minutes.
Cooperative Minister Ajay Singh Kilak said 19.24 lakh farmers have received aid of Rs 5461 crore from the crop loan waiver fund in their bank accounts and the remaining beneficiaries will get the benefit by October 31.
Kilak said the government till date had distributed over Rs 70,000 crore of crop loans to farmers and by the end of financial year it will reach Rs 80,000 crore.
Whereas the previous Congress government had distributed interest free crop loan of Rs 25000 crore in their tenure, he informed the House.
Joining the protesting Congress MLAs, National People's Party (NPP) Naveen Pilania also stepped into the well holding a paper stating purchase of Kharif crops on minimum support price. The speaker again adjourned the House for one and a half hours.
The Congress continued their protest as the House resumed but deputy Speaker Rao Rajendra Singh did not pay any heed. The House managed to pass six bills through voice votes.
However on three bills, few members including one of the BJP raised objection. The assembly was later adjourned sine die.
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