LS adjourned till noon

New Delhi, Mar 8: The Lok Sabha was today (Mar 8, 2006) adjourned till 1200 hrs following an uproar by Opposition parties over the serial terrorist strike on the holy city of Varanasi.

As soon as the House assembled at 1100 hrs, Speaker Somnath Chatterjee asked the members to stand in silence to mourn the loss of lives in the ''heinous acts of violence''.

As soon as the members took their seats after offering their condolence, Opposition benches were up on their feet shouting slogans like ''Har Har Mahadev'', ''Bajrang Bali Ki Jai'' and those expressing anti-government sentiments.

After about five minutes, Mr Chatterjee sensed the mood of the Opposition and adjourned the House till noon.

The Speaker said the senseless acts of violence at Varanasi, which killed about 14 people and left more than 100 injured, were being committed in a ''nefarious attempt to distrub the even tempo of our life and to affect India's unity and integrity''. ''Our people should, in a united manner, continue our fight against such acts of terrorism and violence. We reiterate our strong resolve never to surrender to such criminal acts and we resolve to maintain peace and tranquility and complete harmony among all citizens of our country,'' he said.

The House also offered its wishes for the early recovery of those who were injured.

The BJP and BSP members were prominent among those shouting slogans.

In an outrageous terrorist strike in Varanasi yesterday, the Sankat Mochan temple of Lord Hanuman was rocked by a huge blast and two bombs exploded soon after at a nearby railway station, leaving a trail of blood and gore.

UNI