The Lok Sabha has been adjourned till 2 PM and the Rajya Sabha also witnessed brief adjournment amidst uproar by the opposition members over the Joint Committee Report on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill 2024. The report is scheduled to be tabled in the Lok Sabha today. When the Lower House met this morning, the opposition members including the Congress, DMK and Samajwadi Party created a ruckus.
Speaker Om Birla repeatedly urged the opposition members to allow the House to take up listed business. He said he will allow the members to speak once the report is tabled. Mr Birla added that the Question Hour is important and creating uproar is not appropriate. As pandemonium continued, the Speaker adjourned the House till 2 PM.
Meanwhile, the Joint Committee report on the Waqf Amendment Bill has been tabled in the Rajya Sabha amidst opposition uproar.When the House met this morning, BJP MP, Dr Medha Vishram Kulkarni tabled a copy of the report in the Upper House. As the opposition members continued with their sloganeering, Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar urged them to allow the House to function, but in vain.
The Chairman warned the protesting members of action. Later, he adjourned the House for a brief period till 11.20 AM.When the House reassembled, Leader of the Opposition, Mallikharjuna Kharge alleged that the descent notes given by the opposition members in the committee meetings have not been included in the report. He described it as an anti-democratic move. He added that if the report does not have dissent views, it should be sent back to the committee. Nasir Hussain of the Congress also made similar allegations.
Responding to it, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijuju clarified that no part of the report, proceedings and dissent notes has been deleted. He accused the opposition of misleading the House over the issue. He added that the Parliamentary Committee conducted entire proceedings as per the rule. He also said all the descent notes are attached in the appendix of the report.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman also echoed similar views and criticised the opposition over the issue. Leader of the House J P Nadda said while keeping up the traditions, the Parliamentarians must adhere to constitutional provisions and allow the House to function smoothly. He also said he was disappointed that the opposition members were not allowing the proceedings despite repeated requests by the Chair. He accused the opposition of being irresponsible and should be condemned in strong words.
Not satisfied with the Government’s response, the opposition members staged a walkout from the Upper House. Later, Mr Nadda questioned the opposition over their approach in the Rajya Sabha.
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