Rajya Sabha adjourned for 30 minutes amid Samajwadi Party uproar

NEW DELHI: Samajwadi Party today forced adjournment of Rajya Sabha for half an hour demanding reservation for Muslims in education and government jobs.

When the House met for the day, Ram Gopal Yadav (SP) said he has given a notice for suspension of Question Hour to take up the issue.

The conditions of Muslims, he said, was worse than Dalits and so there should a Constitutional amendment to provide for reservation to Muslims.

As SP members rushed into the well of the House, Chairman Hamid Ansari said, "Please raise in Zero Hour."

Standing near the podium, they raised slogans demanding implementation of the Sachar Committee report.

The Rajinder Sachar Committee, appointed in 2005 by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, was commissioned to prepare a report on the latest social, economic and educational condition of the Muslim community of India. It had concluded that the status of Indian Muslims are below the conditions of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes.

"Please don't come into the Well. This is not allowed," Ansari said. "Please go back to your places," he pleaded with unrelenting SP members.

He then adjourned the House for 30 minutes.