New Delhi, April 25 (IANS): The Rajya Sabha was repeatedly disrupted on Monday as Congress members opposed the imposition of President's Rule in Uttarakhand and raised slogans against the Narendra Modi government.
As soon as the house met, Leader of the Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad accused the central government of vitiating the atmosphere just before the parliament session so as to lead to disruptions.
"We want the house to function and legislation passed. But we have seen how an atmosphere was created to stall the proceedings of the house... For the first time ... President's Rule was imposed in Uttarakhand without following any rules and regulation," said Azad.
"We are witnessing attempts by the ruling party to hinder the functioning of parliament. The central government provokes the opposition and induces disruptions," he said.
Azad also cited the example of Arunachal Pradesh, where a Congress government has been toppled.
He congratulated the judges of the Uttarakhand High Court who ruled against the President's Rule. "I congratulate judges who have the guts to face the central government."
To this, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said the matter was "subjudice" and hence cannot be commented upon. The opposition disagreed.
"We will discuss it and expose you," Congress leader Anand Sharma thundered.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said the issue will be discussed in the house but not now.
"The issue can be discussed when the proclamation comes up for discussion. It cannot be discussed at a pre-proclamation stage," Jaitley said.
As per rules, once Article 356 is imposed on any state, it has to be approved by parliament within two months.
Following this the Congress members trooped near the chairman's podium raising slogans against the central government. Amid the ruckus, the house was first adjourned till 12 noon and then till 2 p.m.
When the house met post lunch, MPs demanded exemption from the odd-even traffic scheme under which only cars with odd registration numbers ply on odd dates and those with even registration numbers on even days.
Soon after, Congress MPs were again on their feet raising slogans against the government. The house was then adjourned again till 3 p.m., and then for the day.