Farmers Movement Archive

Amid fierce protests, RS passes two farm Bills

Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar was in the process of wrapping up his reply to the debate when the situation started spiralling down after Mr. Harivansh rejected the demand from the Opposition benches to end the session for the day as per the schedule. The Opposition wanted the Minister to conclude the reply on Monday. Leader of the Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad also suggested that tradition dictates that the decision to extend the time of the House is not taken on the strength of the numbers but on the basis of consensus. Aam Aadmi Party MP Sanjay Singh, TMC members Dola Sen and Arpita Ghosh marched into the well of the House raising slogans against the legislations. The breaking point came when Mr. Harivansh called out for statutory resolution disapproving the legislation moved by CPI(M) MP K.K. Ragesh. Mr. Ragesh was in the well of the House when his name was called out, but on the directions from the Deputy Chairman, he claims, he ran to his seat. “The rules dictate that even if one member of the House asks for a resolution to be put to vote, it should be,” Mr. Ragesh said. The situation had got out of hand with AAP’s Sanjay Singh and Congress members Rajeev Satav and Syed Naseer Hussain climbing on the table in front of the Secretary General. They were carried away by the marshals. The MPs shot the proceedings on their phones because for many minutes the Rajya Sabha TV went mute and also made sure that the Opposition protests were not shown on the screen. The House was adjourned close to 1.26 p.m. for 15-minutes. When it was reconvened, two rings of marshals protected the Chair. The Bills were passed hurriedly amid the din.

The Hindu

2020-09-21

September 21 2020 00:00 IST