New Delhi: Congress MP Ghulam Nabi Azad and other opposition MPs stage a walkout from the Rajya Sabha, demanding the suspension of 8 lawmakers be revoked, during the ongoing Monsoon Session of Parliament, at Parliament House in New Delhi, Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2020.
The 8 suspended Rajya Sabha MPs have ended their dharna, to show solidarity with opposition MPs who are boycotting the rest of the Monsoon Session over three demands. Through the boycott of the session, the Opposition has demanded that the suspension of the MPs be revoked. The Opposition has also demanded that the government brings a bill which should ensure private players don't procure food grains below the minimum support price (MSP) fixed by the government.
The sit-in protest by eight suspended MPs on Parliament premises continued for the second day on Tuesday, with Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh Singh offering them tea in the morning.
The suspended parliamentarians spent the night in the lawns near Mahatma Gandhi's statue, a first such overnight protest in the Parliament complex, old-timers said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Harivansh Singh's gesture was proof of his greatness.
Harivansh Singh has been in the thick of things since the suspension drama unfolded.
The eight MPs were suspended for the remaining part of the current session over their "misbehavior" with the deputy chairman during the passage of the farm Bills on Sunday.
The Monsoon Session is scheduled to end on October 1. However, the session is likely to be curtailed with several MPs testing positive for COVID-19.
Rajya Sabha Chairman Venkaiah Naidu said Deputy Chairman Harivansh, an MP from Bihar, was physically threatened by opposition MPs on Sunday.
Naidu also rejected a notice for a no-confidence motion against the deputy chairman as it was not in proper format and a 14-day notice period was not given.
Opposition parties have hit out at the government over the suspension of the Rajya Sabha MPs, with the Congress terming it "undemocratic" and "one-sided".
On Monday, after the suspension of the MPs, they launched an indefinite strike, prepared to sit in all night with blankets, pillows and mosquito repellents.
Opposition MPs had brought them refreshments and snacks.
