Oppn stages walkout over curtailed session

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 14

The move by the Congress government to curtail the three-day winter session of the Vidhan Sabha to two days, including the day reserved for obituary references, resulted in pandemonium with AAP and SAD legislators storming the Well of the House and staging symbolic walkouts.

Beginning at 10 am, the session was adjourned sine die at 3.50 pm as Akalis staged a walkout. AAP MLAs led by Leader of the Opposition Harpal Cheema wore black badges protesting against their demand of the session not being extended.

AAP MLA Aman Arora flashed a lock, saying the Assembly be locked in case the session was not held as per the laid-down procedure. He said call attention notices given by them had not been taken up.

Meanwhile, SAD chief Sukhbir Singh Badal termed the two-day Assembly session “murder of democracy”. Addressing a press conference, he said, “The government’s move to scuttle the session is a clear indicator that it is scared of facing the people in the form of their representatives in the House. I have never heard of any state government reducing proceedings of its House to just one day, except perhaps for some special reason.”

“The reason assigned — ‘no business’ — appears flimsy. It means the government has not worked on the ground,” he added.