6 TMC MPs suspended for the day as disruptions continue in Rajya Sabha

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, August 4

As the disruption in Rajya Sabha continued over Pegasus snooping controversy, Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu on Wednesday suspended six TMC MPs from participating in the House proceedings for the rest of the day.

Soon after giving a ruling to suspend the members, the Chairman adjourned the House till 2 pm, as slogan-shouting TMC and other opposition MPs trooped into the well of the House, some holding placards, to demand a discussion on the issue of Israeli-made, military-grade Pegasus snooping gadget being used to spy on opposition leaders, government critics and journalists.

Later, the Rajya Sabha secretariat issued a bulletin in which it named the suspended TMC members - Dola Sen, Md Nadimul Haque, Abir Ranjan Biswas, Shanta Chetri, Arpita Ghosh and Mausam Noor.

Naidu first asked members to go back to their seats and then threatened to invoke Rule 255 against those holding placards. As the members refused to budge, he ordered that those “disobeying the chair and raising placards should leave the House under rule 255”.

While giving the ruling he did not name anyone, but said the Rajya Sabha Secretariat would give the list.

Even after the House proceedings were adjourned, the TMC and other opposition MPs did not leave the House.

Earlier, soon after taking of oath by new TMC member Jawhar Sircar from West Bengal and laying of official documents on the table of the House, Naidu said though he had not admitted notices given under Eule 267 by Ramgopal Yadav and Vishambhar Prasad Nishad of the Samajwadi Party and V Sivadasan of the CPI(M) over farmers’ agitation over three farm laws, a discussion on the issue under a different rule had been admitted.

Rule 267 stipulates setting aside the business of the day to take up discussion on the issue being raised.  

Naidu, however, rejected notices by Sukhendu Sekhar Roy (TMC), Mallikarjun Kharge and KC Venugopal (both Congress), CPI(M)''s Elamaram Kareem and V Sivadasan and Binoy Viswam of the CPI over the Pegasus issue.