The State Assembly on Thursday witnessed frequent adjournments and no businesses, excepting the Question Hour and discussions on a demand of grants, could be conducted as Opposition BJP and Congress members kept demanding a ruling from the Speaker asking the Government to take action against the Kendrapada SP for assaulting a journalist on Wednesday.
Raising the issue during Zero Hour, Leader of Opposition Pradipta Kumar Naik said the incident of the Kendrapada SP assaulting a working journalist during Chief Minister NaveenPatnaik visit to Patkura on Wednesday has been widely televised.
“It is very disappointing that working journalists, who, by risking their lives, disseminate information of people’s problems and Governmnet programmes, are being attacked in the State.
The Government should take action the SP soon,” Naik demanded and urged Speaker Surjya Narayan Patro to give a direction to the Government in that regard.
Another BJP member Bishnu Charan Sethi also slammed the Government saying that working journalists and photojournalists are being assaulted at their work places often.
He demanded that the Government make a special legislation in with the Maharashtra Government provide protection to scribes. He also sought a specific ruling from the Chair in favour of his demand.
As the Speaker didn’t respond, BJP members trouped into the Well of the House and shouted slogans demanding action against the SP and protection for mediapersons. Unable to run the proceedings, Patro first adjourned the House at 11.49 for 15 minutes.
As no development was marked, Deputy Speaker Rajanikant Singh adjourned the House four more times till 12.50 pm.
When the House reassembled, Speaker Patro said the SP has already expressed ‘sorry’ over the incident and, thus, there should be no more discussions on the matter. However, the ruling could not satisfy Opposition BJP and Congress members.
As they again rushed into the Well of the House, Patro adjourned the sitting at 12.56 pm till 3 pm.
During afternoon Hours, Congress Legislature Party Leader Narasingha Mishra wanted to know why a stringent action can’t be taken against the SP when the Patnagarh MLA was arrested for making an engineer to do sit-ups in the public.
As the Speaker didn’t respond and called BJD member Prafulla Samal to initiate discussion on the Demand for Grants relating to the Planning and Convergence Department, BJP members staged a walkout and Congress members sat on a dharna at the podium of the Speaker.
Patro called an all-party meeting to resolve the issue and adjourned the House at 3.31 pm for 30 minutes and then for two times till 5.10 pm from when discussion on the Expenditure continued.