Ruckus in MP Assembly during debate on supplementary demands

The Madhya Pradesh Assembly was adjourned for some time on Thursday following a ruckus during a debate on supplementary budget demands and the Speaker's warning that opposition MLAs would be evicted if they did not let the house function.

Later the House passed supplementary budget allotting Rs 1,600 crore for farmers' welfare.

The trouble began when Congress' Kunal Choudhary interrupted BJP's chief whip Narottam Mishra when the latter was speaking during the debate.

In turn, when Choudhary rose to speak, BJP MLAs interrupted his speech and raised a din.

Speaker N P Prajapati warned the Leader of Opposition (LoP) Gopal Bhargava and other BJP MLAs that they would be evicted from the House if they did not follow decorum.

 

BJP members protested loudly against the Speaker's warning, following which Prajapati adjourned the House for five minutes.

The Speaker called the Assembly Affairs Minister and LoP Bhargava to his chamber to sort out the issue.

When the House reassembled, Choudhary rose to speak, but the opposition benches again interrupted.

The Congress MLA said his voice was being stifled.

Amid the bedlam, BJP MLA and former chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said he had not seen such bitterness and noisy atmosphere in House during his long career as a state legislator and a Parliamentarian.

When opposition MLAs want to speak, the treasury benches do not let them, he alleged.

Chouhan also took exception to the Speaker's threat to evict opposition MLAs, saying it was insulting. In such a situation the opposition would boycott the ongoing session, he said.

Speaker Prajapati said he was a humble man but there are times when he gets hurt, and his statement was a reaction.

Debate should be conducted in healthy atmosphere and there should be no repeat of Thursday's incidents, he said.

He did not have ill-feelings against anyone, and "the way you are hurt, I am also hurt," Prajapati said.

Later the House passed the supplementary budget.