Budget disruption sends wrong singal to world, Left warns BJP

New Delhi, Feb 26 ( UNI ) The Left parties today deplored the BJP and its allies' practice of disrupting the Parliament on various issues including today before the presentation of the Railway Budget.

The BJP and others had, in an "unprecedented step", disrupted the Railway budget on the Bofors payoff case in the Parliament demanding that the Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi involved in the Bofors payment scam be extradited to India without further delay to face a proper trial.

Regretting the disruption as "highly unfortunate," the CPI(M) observed that if the government had chosen to explain to the nation on the delay on sharing information about Quattrocchi's arrest in Argentina on February 6, the situation could have been avoided.

CPI said it had become a regular practice for the BJP to disrupt the House proceedings for the last three years.

The Forward Bloc and the RSP said BJP's action has sent out the wrong signal.

At a press conference in Parliament House, CPI(M) leaders Sitaram Yechury and Basudev Achariya said normally the House is not disrupted in this manner. "We also have some points asking for credible explanation from somebody responsible in the government on the floor of the House." CPI (M) Politburo member and party Parliamentary Group leader Sitaram Yechury said his party also wanted to know what measures the government was taking to expedite the extradition of the accused.

If the government had decided to answer these questions today itself, "the ugly situation might have not arrived," Mr Yechury said adding that the episode also demonstrated about how "non-serious" the NDA and its partners are on raising public issues.

"WE had given the notice for raising the issue of price-rise today." "Unfortunately this could not be taken up. We will discuss this very urgent issue tomorrow," he added.

CPI Floor leader in the Lok Sabha Gurudas Dasgupta said the disruption was" unprecedented".

"They have been playing the same trick prevailing on the proceedings in a manner that the price-rise issue is not discussed," Mr dasgupta added.

Forward Bloc national Secretary G Devrajan and RSP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Abani Roy said the way the BJP behaved, it sent a "wrong signal in the country and the world as a whole." The Left leaders wanted to know from the BJP leadrship who prevented them from discussing the issue as it came up for discussion.

UNI