Pranab faces agitation on Mukherjee Commission report

Kolkata, Jun 18 (UNI) Forward Bloc supporters today blocked the car of Defence Minister Pranab Mukherjee and staged a demonstration here, demanding discussion on the Mukherjee Commission report in arliament.

The incident occurred when Mr Mukherjee was about to enter the city's Taj Bengal hotel to inaugurate the 105th Annual General meeting of Merchants Chamber of Commerce.

Shouting slogans, a motely crowd of demonstrators, under the banner of the Students Bloc, sprung up on the road just outside the hotel stopping the Minister's car from going inside.

They were demanding that the Commission's report that denied credence to the popular theory on Netaji's death in a plane crash be discussed thoroughly in the House.

There was a scuffle as securitymen pounced on the agitators and dragged them away enabling Mr Mukherjee's car to roll inside.

Later, when questioned on the demand of the demonstrators, Mr Mukherjee said the government had already laid the report in Parliament and called for a discussion, which, however, could not take place because of disturbances by BJP members.

''We wanted a discussion on the subject. But the BJP disrupted the proceedings in Parliament and the discussion could not take place,'' he said.

This was the second demonstration Mr Mukherjee faced over the past twenty four hours after a section of Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) employees put up an agitation over their long standing demands when the Defence Minister entered the ISI premises yesterday to participate in a Council meeting.

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