LS adjourned for 50 mts amid surcharged atmosphere

New Delhi, Aug 24: Amid a surcharged atmosphere, the Lok Sabha was adjourned for 50 minutes until 1400 hrs today after ruling RJD members came close to entering the well following some remarks made by Mr Prabhunath Singh (JD-U) about some criminals roaming scott free in Bihar.

Raising the issue during the zero hour, Mr Prabhunath Singh said the Centre was unconstitutionally intervening in Bihar though the law and order was a state subject.

He also mentioned the names of some of the Central Ministers which, however, were expunged by Speaker Somnath Chatterjee.

Upon this, the RJD members, led by Mr Ramkirpal Yadav, Mr Sadhu Yadav and Mr Raghunath Jha rushed towards the well in a visibly furious mood.

Sensing the situation, the Speaker adjourned the House at 1310 hrs, barely ten minutes after it had reassembled after a 45-minute adjournment over the issue of cutting the hair of a Sikh boy in Jaipur.

While deleting the objectionable remarks, the Speaker observed that Mr Prabhunath Singh was trying to ''deliberately provoke members...You are raising an allegation which is not fair. You are making personal allegations.'' The Speaker also took serious note of the behaviour of RJD members, stating it was very unfortunate that they were not heeding his advice for restraint.

Mr Prabhunath Singh said the UPA government was tinkering with the federal structure of the Constitution.

He said a Harijan woman had met Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, complaining that she had been raped on August 6 but the police was not registering the heinous crime in the FIR. She said she wanted to be medically examined, but subsequently backed out due to Central intervention.

UNI