Opposition blocks government’s moves with rule book

NEW DELHI: Day two of Delhi assembly's special session on Friday was chaotic from the beginning. It turned out to be the AAP-led government's last. Protesting against the decision to hold the sitting on a restricted holiday - Guru Ravidas Jayanti - BJP and Congress MLAs interrupted Speaker M S Dhir's address and demanded an apology.

Calling the decision "unconstitutional", Janakpuri BJP MLA Jagdish Mukhi attacked the government for disrespecting the Guru. "Parliament is not working today. Never in the history of this assembly has a session been called on a government holiday. The government must apologize,'' he demanded.

Congress MLA Arvinder Singh protested against the move to table the Jan Lokpal bill on Friday, usually reserved for private member resolutions. Through the day, opposition members kept throwing the rule book at the Speaker as he struggled to conduct proceedings. "You're breaking every rule. Fridays are reserved for private member resolutions. What is the need to bring a Bill (Jan Lokpal), which was not even circulated to members on Friday?" Singh said.

Questioning the government's seriousness on the Lokpal Bill, members claimed the legislation had slipped from the top of the Assembly agenda to the bottom within 12 hours. "Yesterday evening we received the agenda for today's session in which the Bill was top of the list. This morning we got another agenda where the Bill was mentioned towards the end. Is the government serious?" leader of the opposition BJP's Harsh Vardhan, who moved a censure motion against law minister Somnath Bharti, said.

Shouting slogans, BJP and Congress members trooped into the well. Earlier, as soon as the session started, members asked the Speaker to clarify if he had received a communication from L-G Najeeb Jung on Jan Lokpal Bill. They forced Dhir to read out Jung's communication. Although Dhir allowed CM Arvind Kejriwal to table the Bill, BJP and Congress attacked the Speaker for adopting "unconstitutional measures" to introduce the legislation. They demanded a vote on the L-G's communication. The Speaker retracted his decision after most members voted against tabling the Bill.

Kejriwal looked prepared for the end of his 48-day government. His parents, wife and son sat in the visitors' gallery as the drama unfolded and left after the second adjournment. In Kejriwal's absence from the assembly, when the House was adjourned, BJP's Jai Kishan picked up papers from the CM's desk and scampered off. AAP MLAs tried to retrieve them from him, but he didn't oblige.

The four-hour session ended with Kejriwal's emotional address, in which he blamed BJP and Congress for not supporting the anti-graft Bill and hinting at quitting.