 "Suspended Opposition MPs protest during the Winter session of Parliament, in New Delhi on Monday | Photo: pti")
Seventy-eight Opposition MPs were on Monday suspended from Parliament — the highest in a single day — for their unruly conduct and disrupting the proceedings as they persisted with demanding that Union Home Minister Amit Shah make a statement on the December 13 security breach.
The Opposition criticised the government action as “murder of democracy” and the action being evidence of “extreme level of dictatorship”.
The Monday’s action has taken the total of MPs suspended from Parliament to 93, including Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)’s Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh.
On Thursday, the two Houses suspended 14 MPs, including 13 from the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha’s Derek O’Brien, when they were demanding a discussion on the security breach. Two protesters had jumped into the Lok Sabha chamber and opened smoke cans.
Of the 95 MPs the INDIA bloc of parties have in the Rajya Sabha, 45 were suspended on Monday, and one on Thursday. Another MP, Sanjay Singh, is currently in jail. Of the Opposition bloc’s 133 Lok Sabha MPs, 46 stand suspended, including 33 on Monday and 13 on Thursday.
Of the 45 Rajya Sabha MPs, 34 have been suspended for the rest of the winter session, which concludes on Friday, while 11 others will remain suspended until the Privileges Committee’s report on their conduct. The committee has been asked to submit its report in three months.
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In the Lok Sabha, 30 were suspended, including Congress’ Adhir Chowdhury, DMK’s TR Balu and Dayanidhi Maran, and Trinamool Congress’ Saugata Roy, for the remainder of the session while three pending the Privileges Committee report. The three, K Jayakumar, Vijay Vasanth, and Abdul Khaleque, had climbed on the Speaker’s podium to raise slogans.
Speaker Om Birla told the Lok Sabha about the steps taken by the Lok Sabha secretariat following the security breach incident on December 13 and sought cooperation from all members to run the House smoothly. However, the Opposition MPs persisted with their demand and some showed placards with their demands written on them. Birla objected to the placards being brought into the Lok Sabha, saying it lowered the dignity of the House.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi also appealed to the opposition MPs “with folded hands” to not wave the placards, saying it was agreed at the meeting of the Business Advisory Committee not to carry placards.
The Rajya Sabha also witnessed similar scenes and action. In the RS, members were suspended after the House adopted a motion moved by Leader of the House Piyush Goyal. Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar first named the suspended members and then put the motion to vote, which was adopted by voice vote.
Goyal claimed the action was necessary as they insulted the Lok Sabha Speaker and Rajya Sabha chairman. “It was clearly their pre-planned strategy to not allow Parliament to run smoothly,” Goyal later said.
Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge accused the government of trying to bulldoze important draft legislation in an “Opposition-less" Parliament. “Incidentally, I too figure in this Roll of Honour — for the first time in my parliamentary career of 19 years,” he said on X. “This is Murder of Democracy in India(MODI) at work!” “Tanashahi ka Doosra Naam ModiShahi hai— democracy has been suspended!” Congress Rajya Sabha MP Jairam Ramesh said.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee described the action against the MPs as a "mockery of democracy".
Previous instances
In 1989, 63 members of the Lok Sabha were suspended on March 15 for the remaining part of the week over the issue of tabling of the report of the Justice Thakkar Committee that inquired into the assassination of Prime Minister Indira Gandhi.
In January 2019, Speaker Sumitra Mahajan suspended 45 MPs from the Lok Sabha, while in February 2014, Speaker Meira Kumar suspended 14 Andhra Pradesh MPs. In 2015, Speaker Mahajan suspended 25 Congress members for five working days.
