8 Delhi AAP legislators marshalled out amid uproar

The “rice scam” allegations triggered a dramatic confrontation in the Delhi Assembly on Tuesday, with AAP MLAs staging a protest against Food and Supplies Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa and demanding his resignation. Eight AAP legislators were subsequently marshalled out of the House.

The row escalated when AAP MLA Kuldeep Kumar allegedly threw rice grains towards officials during the protest. The BJP condemned the conduct, while the AAP accused the government of attempting to silence the Opposition instead of answering questions over the alleged diversion of subsidised rice meant for Delhi’s poor.

Delhi AAP chief Saurabh Bharadwaj claimed that the alleged scam involved rice worth Rs 22,000 crore.

Sirsa, however, rejected the allegations, asserting that the Delhi Government had neither purchased nor sold the rice in question and had incurred no financial liability in the matter.

Speaking in the Assembly, Sirsa said the proposal had merely been forwarded with the observation that it “may be considered positively as per rules and regulations”. He said the rice was to be procured through the FCI and was not part of Delhi’s existing quota.

Sirsa said the FCI had subsequently directed the entity concerned to procure rice at the auction rate rather than the subsidised rate. He claimed that the entity had deposited Rs 26.5 crore and was required to deposit another Rs 13 crore.

The confrontation intensified after the House resumed proceedings following the lunch break, when AAP members returned with placards and raised slogans demanding Sirsa’s resignation. Speaker Vijender Gupta said the Opposition’s conduct was unacceptable and accused the AAP MLAs of repeatedly disrupting proceedings during the three-day session.

Following the protest, MLAs Sanjeev Jha, Jarnail Singh, Kuldeep Kumar, Som Dutt, Ajay Dutt, Virendra Kadyan, Surinder Kumar and Chaudhary Zubair Ahmed were marshalled out of the Assembly.