RS Adjourned twice over Madurai media attack, Gujarat incidents

New Delhi, May 10 (UNI) The attack on a newspaper in Tamil Nadu, allegedly involving the son of DMK chief M Karunanidhi, and the Gujarat fake encounter issue today forced the adjournment of the Rajya Sabha twice.

It was for the third day that the fake encounter issue led to the disruption of the proceedings of the House.

The Congress, the Samajwadi Party, the CPI(M), the AIADMK and the RJD members rose up as soon as the House met for the day and demanded that the Chair suspend the Question Hour and take up the issue ''in view of the urgency of the matter which was directly impinging on the working of the democratic system in the country.'' The AIADMK wanted to raise the issue of yesterday's attack on Dinakaran daily in Madurai in which three employees of the vernacular daily were killed allegedly by supporters of DMK chief M Karunanidhi's son M K Azhagiri, protesting the publication of a report based on a survey on the line of succession in the ruling DMK.

However, Chairman Bhairon Singh Shekhawat, referring to the 150th anniversary of the First War of Independence advised them to defer the matter till tomorrow ''as today is the martyr's day and you should give respect to the House''.

Mr Shahid Siddiqui of Samajwadi Party said any matter involving threat to the democractic rights of the people was the apt thing to be discussed in the House on an urgent basis.

The Chairman further said no harm would be done if the matter was postponed for a day.

But the Members were in no mood to listen and continued to disrup proceedings of the House, forcing Mr Shekhawat to adjourn the House till 1200 hrs.

However, as soon as the House assembled again at 1200 hrs, AIADMK members troops into the well of the House even as Deputy Chairman K Rehman Khan hurriedly ordered the ministers and members to table their reports on the table of the House.

The AIADMK MPs sought dismissal of the DMK Government, but nothing further was audible in the din.

The Chair's appeals for the AIADMK members to resume their seats fell on deaf ears and he was left with no choice but to adjourn the House till 1400 hours.

The fake encounter issue had disrupted the functioning of the House on May seven and eight too.

UNI