Bhubaneswar, Mar 12 (UNI) Opposition Congress MLAs on Wednesday boycotted the Odisha Assembly proceedings in protest against the suspension of party MLA Tara Prasad Bahinipati from the House for seven days.
The media covering the Assembly proceedings also boycotted the session on Wednesday in protest against the Assembly Secretariat’s decision to ban mobile phones in the press gallery.
Bahinipati was suspended after Government Chief Whip Saroj Pradhan moved a motion on Tuesday requesting the Speaker to suspend him for seven days due to his unruly and indecent behavior in the House.
The motion was passed by a voice vote, following which Speaker Surama Padhy announced Bahinipati’s suspension for seven working days, starting Wednesday.
On Tuesday, the Odisha Assembly witnessed pandemonium as the Treasury bench and Opposition members engaged in a scuffle inside the House during a protest by Opposition Congress and BJD members. The House plunged into chaos, forcing the Speaker to adjourn proceedings nine times before finally adjourning for the day. Only a 13-minute debate was conducted during the question hour.
Both BJD and Congress members staged a walkout in protest against the Speaker’s decision to suspend Congress MLA Tara Prasad Bahinipati.
Later, Congress members staged a dharna near the Gandhi statue inside the Assembly premises. The protest was withdrawn after State Congress President Bhakta Charan Das met the agitating MLAs and requested them to call off the dharna.
Das, however, announced that Congress members would boycott the Assembly on Wednesday to protest against the suspension of their party MLA.
As the House convened for the day, Congress members voiced their opposition, calling the Speaker’s decision undemocratic and illegal before boycotting the Assembly proceedings.
The Congress members then proceeded to the Gandhi statue inside the Assembly premises and staged a sit-in, demanding the immediate withdrawal of Bahinipati’s suspension order.
Speaking to the media, Bahinipati stated that no party MLA would attend the Assembly session until the Speaker revoked the suspension order.
Meanwhile, the Opposition BJD also condemned the Speaker’s decision to suspend Bahinipati. On Wednesday, BJD leaders met the Speaker in her chamber and requested her to withdraw the suspension order.
BJD Deputy Leader Prasanna Acharya, Deputy Chief Whip Pratap Deb, and senior MLAs Ranendra Pratap Swain and Arun Sahu urged the Speaker to reconsider the decision.
Despite the absence of Congress legislators, the House functioned normally during the question hour.
Government Chief Whip Saroj Pradhan and Odisha Higher Education and Sports Minister Suravanshi Suraj met Congress MLAs at the dharna site and appealed to them to return to the House and participate in the debate.
Meanwhile, journalists covering the Assembly proceedings also boycotted the session on Wednesday in protest against the decision to ban mobile phones in the press gallery.
The journalists staged a demonstration near the Gandhi statue, condemning the Assembly Secretariat’s decision. They declared that they would not cover the Assembly proceedings until the restriction on mobile phones was lifted.
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