By Arun Pratap Singh
Garhwal Post Bureau
Gairsain, 28 Oct: The second and concluding day of the Uttarakhand Legislative Assembly’s session at Bhararisain in Gairsain witnessed repeated disruptions today, with Congress members staging protests both outside and inside the House over alleged corruption and other issues. The Opposition members entered the Well, raised slogans, waved black flags and threw papers, demanding discussions on matters they claimed were of public importance. Amid the continuing uproar, Assembly Speaker Ritu Khanduri Bhushan eventually adjourned the House sine die at around 1.10 p.m.
Before the sitting of the House for the proceedings today, Leader of the Opposition Yashpal Arya led Congress members in a dharna outside the Assembly building. The Congress members raised several issues, including alleged corruption, and demanded that these be discussed during the session. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Subodh Uniyal also met the protesting legislators in an attempt to persuade them to participate in the House proceedings.
The Opposition’s protest continued after the House assembled. Congress members were particularly agitated over the rejection of their notice seeking an adjournment of the proceedings to discuss alleged corruption. They demanded a discussion under Rule 310 on an alleged Rs 210 crore corruption matter related to cabinet minister Rekha Arya and entered the Well of the House, waving black flags and raising slogans. Slogans relating to the Ankita Bhandari case were also raised during the protest.
The repeated disruptions forced the Speaker to adjourn the proceedings first until 11.20 a.m. and subsequently until noon. When the House reassembled, the Congress members again entered the Well and continued their protest, insisting that the issues raised by them be taken up for discussion. Despite the commotion, the Question Hour was taken up, but the Opposition continued its sloganeering and display of black flags and black cloth inside the House.
Congress leader Pritam Singh also raised allegations of corruption concerning Cabinet Minister Rekha Arya and demanded an impartial investigation into the matter. Rekha Arya countered the allegations by referring to the Congress Government’s tenure between 2012 and 2017. Leader of the Opposition Yashpal Arya maintained that the House should devote time to discussing important issues concerning the State, while Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami questioned the Opposition’s intentions behind seeking an adjournment motion.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Subodh Uniyal accused the Opposition of wasting valuable time of the House by insisting on a discussion under Rule 310. He said the Opposition had an opportunity to raise the matter under Rule 58 but had failed to utilise it. He claimed that the Opposition has shot itself in the foot and caused a loss to the State. The House’s time was important. A notice under Rule 310 is meant for an urgent matter. The Opposition is misleading the people.
Meanwhile, Congress MLA Mohammad Shahzad raised the issue of flood protection under Rule 58. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Subodh Uniyal responded to the matter. Another issue concerning human-wildlife conflict in Kotdwar under the Lansdowne Forest Division also came up in the House. The discussion centred on the construction of a protective wall to prevent wild animals from entering human habitations and the money contributed by local residents towards the work.
It was pointed out that local people had spent their own money on the construction of the protective wall. Taking cognisance of the issue, Assembly Speaker Ritu Khanduri Bhushan directed the Government to return the money contributed by the residents. The issue brought into focus the concerns of people living in areas affected by human-wildlife conflict and the need for appropriate Government intervention.
BJP members meanwhile, raised the issue of alleged threats to two young women from Chakrata by brothers of a senior Congress leaders. The matter was brought up during the proceedings even as the ruling party and Opposition continued to trade allegations over various issues.
The session also witnessed a disagreement between the ruling party and Opposition over a proposed group photograph of the MLAs. Since the Gairsain sitting was the last session of the present Assembly, a group photograph event of the MLAs was organised today. However, Congress members chose to stay away from the exercise as a mark of protest.
BJP MLA Arvind Pandey criticised the Congress legislators for boycotting the photo session, while members of the ruling party demanded that a censure resolution be brought against the Opposition. The Congress members defended their decision, arguing that the manner in which legislators had allegedly been treated during the session made participation in a ceremonial photograph inappropriate. Speaker Ritu Khanduri Bhushan observed that the opportunity for a group photograph of the new legislators had passed.
The Assembly proceedings remained disrupted for a considerable part of the day due to the Opposition’s insistence on discussions on corruption and other matters. The two-day session thus ended without the Opposition getting the discussions it had demanded, with the Speaker adjourning the House sine die at around 1.10 p.m.
