Ruckus in House over DGP remarks

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, February 24

Pandemonium prevailed in the Punjab Vidhan Sabha today amid a strong demand by the Aam Aadmi Party and the Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP alliance to dismiss Punjab DGP Dinkar Gupta over his purported remarks on the Kartarpur Sahib corridor. The House had to be adjourned four times.

On the second day of the Budget session today, the Opposition MLAs refused to budge and protested all through the nearly four-hour Vidhan Sabha sitting. Trying to mollify the legislators, Speaker Rana KP Singh asked the MLAs to cool down and wait for Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh to make a statement in the House on Tuesday. The CM was not present in the House today.

However, the Opposition MLAs refused to back off and protested in the Well of the House. As a few AAP and SAD MLAs also pushed the watch and ward staff, the Speaker named them. He ordered their eviction from the House by the marshals. Later, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Brahm Mohindra and Technical Education Minister Charanjit Singh Channi intervened and urged the Speaker to let off the MLAs with a warning. The Speaker then adjourned the House for the day.