New Delhi, March 8 (SocialNews.XYZ) The newly-appointed Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Rajya Sabha, Malliakarjun Kharge, began his stint on an aggressive note on the first day of the House proceedings after recess.
On the issue of fuel price hike, the senior Congress leader gave a notice to the chair for suspension of business but it was not allowed, following which the opposition stalled the proceedings of the House.
Observers said that Kharge's aggression is just opposite to his predecessor Ghulam Nabi Azad, who was more mild.
During the first leg of the ongoing Budget session, then LoP Azad had agreed to the discussion on the motion of thanks by the President, but it was delayed in the Lok Sabha even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi took pot shots at Rahul Gandhi for not being in sync with the strategy of the opposition in the Upper House. The Prime Minister had even praised the outgoing LoP in his farewell speech.
Congress insiders said that now the whole strategy will be monitored by Rahul Gandhi in the Upper House after the appointment of Kharge as the LoP.
However, the Congress has a parliamentary strategy committee headed by Sonia Gandhi to devise the party's stand on crucial issues, which even met on Sunday. The treasury bench may feel the heat on key contentious issues, but the government has the numbers, so passing a bill may not be a problem.
On Monday, the House was adjourned for the day after the Opposition forced multiple adjournments in the Rajya Sabha, the first day of the second half of the Budget session, as it pressed for discussion on the fuel price hike.
The House was first adjourned till 11 a.m. and when it met again, Kharge repeated his earlier demand. Deputy Chairman Harivansh said the ruling of the Chairman could not be reconsidered. Pandemonium soon followed and the House was again adjourned till 1 p.m., then till 1.15 p.m. and after that till 1.30 pm and finally for the day.
Earlier, the Chairman of the House, M. Venkaiah Naidu, had rejected Kharge's notice for suspension of business under Rule 267.
Kharge said, "Petrol price has reached Rs 100 per litre in some parts of the country and the government has earned more than Rs 20 lakh crore in the last six years through taxes, and it's utmost important to discuss the issue."
But the Chair did not allow the notice and said that it was against the rules. The House was adjourned after the Congress MPs resorted to sloganeering.
"I don't want to take drastic action on the first day," Naidu said.
Source: IANS
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