Parliament adjourned till noon amid uproar

NEW DELHI: Parliament was on Tuesday adjourned till noon following Opposition uproar over alleged scam in top railway appointments, coal block allocation issue and demands for resignation of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

Opposition members rushed to the Well in both Houses raising slogans against Law Minister Ashwani Kumar for his alleged role in diluting the CBI status report on the coal block allocations.

In the Lok Sabha, soon after Speaker Meira Kumar read out the obituary reference to former member Chandramani Tripathi, the House plunged into turmoil with members of BJP, SP and Left parties trooping into the Well.

BJP members raised slogans against the government's bid to push through the National Food Security Bill in the Lok Sabha without a proper discussion.

BJP and AIADMK members insisted on resignation of the Prime Minister, the Law Minister and Railway Minister P K Bansal for their alleged role in the cash-for-railway jobs matter and dilution of CBI report respectively.

SP members demanded implementation of Sachar Committee recommendations for welfare of religious minorities.

Left members too sought resignation of the Law Minister. The Speaker tried to continue with the Question Hour, but as members were unrelenting she adjourned the House till noon.

In Rajya Sabha, BJP and AIADMK members rushed into the Well shouting "Pradhan Mantri Istifa do, Istifa do (Prime Minister resign)" as Chairman Hamid Ansari took his seat.

Amidst slogan shouting, Ansari took up the first listed question of the day and asked Maya Singh (BJP) to ask supplementaries.

Singh said she will ask supplementaries only after it is clear as to when the Law Minister and the Railway Minister will resign.

All the while, members shouted slogans in the Well demanding dismissal of the Law Minister.

As the din continued, Ansari adjourned the House till noon.