Constantly against price hike and GST on food in Parliament Four Congress Lok Sabha MPs were suspended for protesting with placards. They will not be able to attend the session during the remaining days of the current monsoon session.
Meanwhile, the Congress and the opposition kept the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha virtually shut down for five days last week to protest against the price hike and GST on food products. As four Congress MPs were suspended on the first day of the second week last Monday, the conflict between the opposition and the government is expected to increase. On the second day of the ED’s questioning of Sonia Gandhi on Sunday, the Congress also moved in and out of Parliament over the ‘misuse’ of the Central Investigation Agency.
Like last week, on Monday too, Congress and opposition MPs demanded a discussion on price hike, GST on food products, increase in cooking gas prices. As Speaker Om Birla did not allow them, they tried to come in front of the Speaker’s table with placards. The speaker said in an angry tone, the discussion can be held after three in the afternoon. But if you want to show the placard, you have to go outside the parliament building and show it. His lack of action should not be seen as a weakness.
Names of suspended MPs
At three o’clock MPs again went down to the floor of the Lok Sabha with placards. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Prahlad Joshi demanded their punishment. Soon after, the Speaker suspended Congress’s Manikom Tagore, Jyotimani, Ramya Haridas and TN Pratapan for the remainder of the monsoon session. Four MPs sat in protest in front of the Gandhi statue after the Speaker suspended them. Manikom, Jyotimani argue, opposition protests are not shown on Sangsad TV. The TV camera is held above the speaker’s face. As a result, people have to hold the placard in front of the speaker to attract people’s attention.
Last Monday, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi hit out at the Modi government for increasing the GST on scientific research equipment from 5% to 18%. Aam Aadmi Party’s Rajya Sabha MP Raghav Chadda said, “In response to my question, the government has said that petrol prices have been increased 78 times and diesel prices 76 times in 2021-22. It has been reduced only seven times and ten times.”
Reminder of last year’s session
In last year’s monsoon session too, using Pegasus software, there was a ruckus against secret monitoring and three agriculture bills. 12 opposition MPs were suspended during the winter session for uproar in the state assembly on the last day. Congress leaders on Monday termed the attempt to run the parliament by suspending the opposition MPs as “a sign of Modi government’s arrogance”. Jairam Ramesh, a Congress expert in the Rajya Sabha, said, “Modi government is not willing to negotiate on price hike, GST. A false promise is being made that there will be a discussion some day later. It won’t work.”