The Rajya Sabha was adjourned twice on Thursday over the Unnao rape victim incident with the Opposition including the Congress and Samajwadi Party(SP) trying to raise the issue and the chair denying them to do so. The first adjournment was in the pre-lunch session and the second in the afternoon.
The House saw the first adjournment soon after Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu commenced the Zero Hour soon after the day’s proceedings began. He disallowed the Congress and SP to raise issues including the Unnao incident as it was not listed for the Zero Hour.
Raising point of order, Derek O’Brien(TMC)sought to know why no calling attention and short duration discussions were listed in the business during this week. He also tried to raise the Unnao incident involving a rape survivor but was not allowed by the chair. The victim is battling for life with more than 90 per cent burns after she was allegedly set ablaze by five men while on Thursday morning while she was on her way to court.
The victim, who was assaulted in December last year and is being treated in a Lucknow hospital, said in a statement that she was on her way from her village in Unnao district to Rae Bareli where the trial is going on when she was attacked and set ablaze.
Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad, too, expressed concerned over the issue of short duration discussion and said it had not happened last week as well and two discussions should be scheduled for next week.
Naidu said the Minister concerned said he was unwell and, hence, requested to postpone the discussion for next week and assured it would be held on Tuesday.
However, SP leader Ram Gopal Yadav tried to draw the attention of the House to the Unnao rape case and even Congress members were on their feet insisting the same. To which, the Chair said there would not be discussion on the issues that were not listed for Zero Hour. Naidu then adjourned the Zero Hour at 11.15 am.
The second adjournment for half-an-hour came in the post lunch session with the Congress raising the matter. The agitated members brought up the issue when the House was to commence a discussion on The Taxation Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2019.
Congress leader Anand Sharma urged Deputy Chairman Harivansh to at least listen to the opposition members who wanted to discuss the incident of the attack on the Unnao rape survivor.
The deputy chairman did not pay any heed to the opposition members and asked K K Ragesh of the CPI(M) to move a resolution to disapprove the Taxation Laws (Amendment) Ordinance, 2019 promulgated on September 20, 2019.
While the opposition members kept on raising the issue loudly, the deputy chairman asked Ragesh to proceed with the resolution. Ragesh replied that he could not move the resolution and asked him to bring the House to order.
Harivansh then adjourned the House for half-an-hour (till 2:38PM).