Amid Manipur issue ruckus, Rajya Sabha adjourned until 2 PM

The members of the opposition further requested for Modi to address the House regarding the matter.

New Delhi: Rajya Sabha was adjourned till 2 pm on Friday, the second time in the first half of the day, amid an uproar by opposition members who demanded a discussion on Manipur and that Prime Minister Narendra Modi give a statement on the issue in the House.

As soon as Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar started conducting Question Hour, the opposition members started raising slogans, demanding a discussion on the situation in Manipur, which has been roiled by ethnic violence.

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The opposition members also demanded that Modi address the House on the issue.

“Had you (opposition) agreed to the Chair on July 20 (on a short-duration discussion on the issue), then this situation would not have come,” Dhankhar said.

There was a detailed discussion on the Manipur issue in Lok Sabha and it could have been possible here as well but “you missed that opportunity”, he said.

Amid the continued sloganeering, some opposition members trooped into the well, prompting Dhankhar to stand up and ask them to return to their seats.

With the opposition members not relenting, the Chair adjourned the House till 2 pm.

The opposition has been demanding a discussion on the Manipur issue since the Monsoon session of Parliament began on July 20. Friday is the last day of the session.

Responding to a no-confidence motion in Lok Sabha, Modi on Thursday assured people of Manipur that the Centre and the state government were working together to restore peace in the violence-hit state. He asserted that the culprits behind the heinous crimes against women will face stringent punishment.

Earlier, Rajya Sabha proceedings were adjourned till 12 noon as opposition members protested over a BJP member raising the issue of law and order in Rajasthan.

During the farewell of five members, BJP’s Kirodi Lal Meena raised a point of order and said there was no law and order in Rajasthan.

This led to an uproar by opposition parties even as Dhankhar declined the point of order.

Amid the ruckus, the proceedings were adjourned till 12 noon.