The Lok Sabha session was adjourned twice within an hour as the Opposition on Wednesday questioned police action against protesting students and repeated demands for the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over examination irregularities. Congress leader KC Venugopal demanded accountability and asked Pradhan to resign
Speaker Om Birla resumed order when the House reconvened at 11 am. He said he was open to discussion after the question hour. Birla said members will get the time they need. “But the discussion does not take place until after Question Hour,” he said, urging members to give notice if they wanted to raise the matter. Birla adjourned the session until noon amidst sloganeering.
The opposition protested again at noon with Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav saying the issue was not related to any political party. “It is about the students and youth of India,” he said. He warned that if their voices continued to be ignored in Parliament, the opposition would bring the fight back to the streets.
Yadav said the sit-in outside Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s residence on Tuesday happened because the issue was not taken up in the House. It was alleged that the female students were mistreated during police movements on Monday and that their clothes were torn. “Is this how we will treat our boys and girls?”
Yadav wondered why Modi remained silent on the issue. “If he can talk about other issues, why can’t he talk about this?” he asked as the Lok Sabha session was again adjourned till 2 pm amid the ongoing protests.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju had earlier said that the government was ready for discussion in the House.
Most of the opposition members were wearing black clothes in protest against the government over the actions of the police two days ago.
Activist Sonam Wangchuk’s hunger strike and forced deportation from Delhi’s Jantar Mantar has galvanized the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protest movement against paper leaks and examination irregularities. Tens of thousands of protesters marched to Parliament on Monday to demand Pradhan’s resignation, making it the largest public protest of Modi’s third term.
On Tuesday, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi led an unprecedented protest outside Modi’s residence, even as opposition leaders visited Jantar Mantar to support the student agitators. The protest continued for about three and a half hours before the protest leaders were forcibly dragged and placed on buses.
