Uproar in Assembly over 'locking' of girls during CM Naveen Patnaik's visit

BHUBANESWAR: The Odisha Assembly today witnessed repeated adjournments with opposition Congress demanding unconditional apology from Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik over alleged locking of some girl students during his visit to a city college.

The issue was raised by Congress Chief Whip Taraprasad Bahinipati as soon as the House assembled for the question hour.

Showing newspaper clippings, Bahinipati alleged that around 10 girl students of Maa Rama Devi University here were locked up in a room by the police anticipating disturbance during Patnaik's campus visit for inaguration of the state's first women's university yesterday.

While demanding unconditional apology from the Chief Minister, who is also the Home Minister, the Congress members, led by Bahinipati, attempted to climb on the Speaker's podium and grab his mike.

Unable to run the House, Speaker Niranjan Pujari adjourned the House till 12 noon.

As soon as the House reassembled, the Congress lawmakers again created furore. Following this, the Speaker adjourned the House till 3 PM.

Leader of the Opposition Narasingha Mishra (Cong) said, "I demand that the Chief Minister should come to the House and beg apology for illegally confining girls in their own college. This action of police clearly violated the basic human rights and constitutional rights of girls."