The House was adjourned on Monday afternoon till at 11 am on Tuesday following the BJP MlAs led by Madan Kaushik creating a pandemonium over the arrest of the party leaders, including the leader of the Opposition Ajay Bhatt during the Assembly gherao rally.
As the House met for post-lunch session at 4pm on Monday, things started, the protest forcing the Speaker to adjourn it for 20 minutes. Thereafter, as the BJP remaining on the disruptive mode, the Speaker adjourned the House till 11 am on Tuesday.
Opposition remaining unrelenting, the House could not have passed the government’s speech and discussed the budget-2016-17.
The Opposition MlAs said the party leaders and activists being beaten by the Mounted Police and water cannons being unleashed on them , they could not allow the House to function. They demanded debate on it under section 310 of the House proceedings. However, the Speaker was unmoved and he tried to run the House as scheduled. He asked the Treasury bench to take up the normal proceedings. As the education minister Mantri Prasad Naithani started to speak on the State Budget, the Opposition members stormed into the well of the House, shouting slogans. The Speaker was forced to adjourn the House for next 20 minutes at 4.10 pm.
As the House met at 4.30 pm the Opposition remained in the protest mode. The Speaker again asked the Treasury bench to take up the remaining work. But things remained stuck with the Opposition refusing to relent.
Significantly, the day was meant to have the Chief Minister Harish Rawat answer all the queries regarding the Governor’s keynote address. CM failed to conform to the routine business with the uproarious scenes continuing in the House. later, the Speaker adjourned the House till 11 am on Tuesday.
Reacting to the Opposition’s role, CM said it was queer. While they had raised issues inside the House they were resorting to pandemonium when the government was ready to answer them, he said.
Talking about the BJP’s Vidhan Sabha Gherao, CM said that the BJP leaders were a confused lot. “The issues they have raised on the roads should be allowed to be discussed inside the House. Their tolerance seems to have hit the nadir. This can account for their thrashing an innocent horse with lathi. I have instructed DGP to provide best medical treatment to the bruised horse,” he said.
Making it clear that his party would use the incident up to the hilt to take the wind out of the Opposition sails, he said no FIR would be lodged against the errant saffron leaders. “It is better to leave it to the people. They would rise to the occasion at the appropriate time to teach them lessons,” CM said.