The first day of Delhi assembly saw high voltage drama on Friday with the BJP MLAs walking out of the session on Friday within minutes after the start of the Winter Session after raising slogans against the ruling party.
The BJP MLAs led by Leader of Opposition Vijender Gupta walked out of the House after Speaker Ram Niwas Goel declared the issues to be raised under Rule 280 to be deemed read by the listed members. The opposition leaders also protested that no Question Hour was provided in the three days session so that the MLAs could question the government.
Gupta also alleged that his speech was interrupted as his microphone was switched off while the AAP MLAs began creating a ruckus. He added that when he protested the act of silencing him, Gupta was expelled from the assembly by marshals. “In solidarity, other BJP MLAs staged a walkout from the session,” he said.
Speaking to the media outside the assembly, the LoP and other BJP legislators condemned the incident, calling it deeply unfortunate. He said that silencing the voice of the Leader of Opposition in a democratic institution is unacceptable.
“The AAP government is "suppressing" the voice of the opposition by not allowing them to speak in the Delhi Assembly under Rule 280 despite accepting their notices,” the LoP charged in a statement.
The BJP leader said the opposition wanted to discuss several critical issues, including the extravagant expenditure on former chief minister Arvind Kejriwal's bungalow, issuance of voter ID cards allegedly to Rohingyas and inclusion of their names in the voters lists, and reports of CAG yet to be tabled in the Assembly. "The opposition sought accountability from the government on these matters, but their voice was stifled and they were not allowed to speak on these pressing issues," he charged.
Gupta accused the AAP of shirking its responsibilities and noted that the current assembly session did not include any provision for a Question Hour. “None of the assembly sessions held this year had the Question Hour, which is a violation of the constitutional rights of the MLAs,” he said.
He added that the opposition had urged the government to include short-duration discussions and calling attention motion proposals in the assembly proceedings to ensure the participation of the MLAs but these demands were outrightly rejected.
The people of Delhi have recognized the "malpractices" of the so-called "honest" government of the AAP and have made up their minds to teach them a lesson by voting them out of power in the next assembly elections, he added.
He further accused the AAP government of being directly responsible for the crimes in Delhi, as its own leaders are busy shielding Rohingyas and criminals.
He also criticized the Delhi government for failing to utilize the substantial funds provided by the Central Government under the Nirbhaya Fund for women’s safety and demanded the immediate implementation of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) in Delhi to identify and deport Rohingyas and Bangladeshis involved in criminal activities.