Speaker forced to eat words, unruly MPs get their way

New Delhi: After high drama in Parliament on Monday when Somnath Chatterjee adjourned the lower House, the Lok Sabha Speaker will reportedly withdraw reference of "unruly behaviour" of 32 MPs to the Privileges Committee.

The Speaker had referred 32 “undisciplined” MPs from various Opposition parties to the Parliamentary Privileges Committee.

It is believed that Chatterjee took this decision after External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee and leader of the Opposition L K Advani met the Speaker outside the House.

The MP's have assured the Speaker of smooth functioning of the House and requested him to reconsider his decision on the 32 MPs. Meanwhile, the Lok Sabha has been adjourned sine die.

Reacting to the Speaker’s decision, BJP leader Santosh Gangawar told CNN-IBN, “The Lok Sabha is like a family and the Speaker is the mukhia. It is well within his rights to take such steps. There is no bitterness between the Opposition and the Speaker. We are grateful that he has reconsidered his decision.”

Earlier in the day, in an apparent attempt at Gandhigiri, the NDA leaders decided to observe maun vrat (vow of silence) to protest the Speaker's decision – a “policy” to be reviewed every day till the current Parliament session ends on May 9.

Not just the NDA, the Samajwadi Party too is protesting, saying the MPs have never been subjected to such restrictions.

On Thursday, the Speaker had referred the MPs to the Privileges Committee for disrupting proceedings in the House. Thirty-one MPs from the NDA camp had raised slogans against price rise in the House on April 24.

BSP MP Brajesh Pathak had caused repeated disruptions when Union Minister Ram Vilas Paswan was making a statement in the House the next day.

Responding to the Speaker's disciplinary action, BJP leader VK Malhotra said the Privileges Committee was not for “paralysing” MPs.

“Privileges Committee is for the protection of MPs not for paralysing them. Without notice, the issue was referred to the Committee,” he said.

It was not only the NDA allies who were facing the Speaker’s disciplinary action, MPs from parties like the SP, BSP and Shiv Sena were also named by Chaterjee.

And for once it was an issue, which seemed to have united the non-Congress and the non-BJP parties in Parliament.