Kerala Assembly witnesses noisy scenes

Thiruvananthapuram, Mar 11 (UNI) The Kerala Assembly was adjourned for 80 minutes today following noisy scenes after Speaker K Radhakrishnan denied mike to Leader of the Opposition Oommen Chandy during Question Hour.

The trouble started when Civil Supplies Minister C Divakaran was replying to a question on the irregularities in the preparation of the Below Poverty Line (BPL) list.

The Speaker allowed the Leader of the Opposition to ask a supplimentary question. After the Minister's reply, Mr Chandy once again rose from his seat, leading to a ruling from the Speaker that a discussion could not be allowed during the Question Hour.

Agitated Opposition members then rushed to the well of the House shouting slogans demanding the cancellation of the existing BPL list. However, the Speaker persuaded the Opposition members to return to their seat.

The Minister assured the House that the government would take steps to rectify the anomalies in the list once the ongoing field survey was over.

Even after the Minister's reply, the Opposition insisted that Mr Chandy should be given mike, leading to the adjournment of the House.

Later, the Speaker held talks with Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan, the Leader of the Opposition and parliamentary party leaders for the smooth conduct of the House.

The House resumed at about 1045 hrs after cutting short the Zero Hour.

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