Heated exchanges over Sushma''s remarks forces RS to adjourn

New Delhi, Aug 3

Heated debates and vehement protests marked yet another day in Rajya Sabha on Monday, prompted mainly by External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj’s speech defending herself against allegations of helping former IPL Commissioner Lalit Modi secure travel documents.

Congress members of the House protested against her speech, demanding to know how she could speak without the Chair’s permission.The House had to be adjourned twice to rein in the chaos, before finally adjourning for the day without transacting business yet again.

Swaraj managed to begin her speech amidst the chaos that prevailed during the Zero Hour, in which she began to brush aside claims that she requested the British Government to enable Modi to travel to the UK in 2010 as “unfounded”, prompting her party colleagues to applaud.

The Minister claimed she has been coming to the House every day for two weeks in the hope of being allowed to make a statement over the row.

However, the Opposition’s slogans raised against her as they stormed the Well forced her to halt midway and the Deputy Chairman PJ Kurien to adjourn the House until noon. Leader of the House Arun Jaitley’s assurance that Swaraj would make a statement to initiate the debate also failed to calm the House.

Question Hour also saw similar protests by the Congress members, some of who also demanded the resignation of HRD Minister Smriti Irani, who was present in the House at that time, due to the row over her educational qualifications.

Congress MP Pramod Tewari and Deputy Leader in the House Anand Sharma objected to Swaraj’s statement, claiming that it was against the House’s procedure to make a statement without being called upon to do so by the Chair. They claimed

Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman PJ Kurien ruled that Sushma Swaraj replied to allegations made against her and she did not make a statement.

The Opposition, led mainly by the Congress, has been demanding resignations of three BJP leaders playing key roles in the central and state governments —Swaraj, Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.

Sushma’s statement in RS without notice: Cong tells Ansari

Meanwhile, the Congress objected to Sushma Swaraj’s statement in the Rajya Sabha on chief Lalit Modi, saying it was made without notice and urged Chairman Hamid Ansari to not take it on record.

In its complaint to the Chairman, Congress members have taken strong exception to Swaraj making the statement “suo motu without any notice” and sought his intervention to ensure that the “illegal” statement is not taken on record, sources said. — PTI/TNS