Uproar in Orissa Assembly, House adjourned sans Question Hour

Bhubaneswar, Aug 27 (UNI) The Orissa Assembly was today adjourned thrice, and finally for lunch, without transacting Question Hour as the Opposition Congress stalled the proceedings over the deteriorating law and order situation in the wake of killing of VHP leader Swami Laxamananda Saraswati and four of his disciples.

The Opposition Congress members trooped into the well of the House and shouted anti-government slogans, demanding the resignation of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.

Speaker Kishore Mohanty tried to pacify the Opposition and requested them to return to their seats but in vain.

The agitated members also tried to rush to the podium and obstructed the Speaker's attempt to proceed with Question Hour.

Unable to bring the situation under control, the Speaker adjourned the House for ten minutes at 1052 hrs. The House reassembled but was then again adjourned twice till 1200 hrs and finally for lunch till 1500 hrs.

The trouble started immediately after the House passed an obituary reference and observed one minute silence in memory of former Pipli MLA and great sarvodaya leader Jayakrushna Mohanty.

As the Speaker asked state Rural Development Minister Biswa Bhushan Harichandan to reply to a question and the Minister started reading the reply, Congress members created a ruckus in the House, stating that several houses and places of worship were attacked and torched in the state following the murder of the Swamiji.

Soon Congress members Sadan Naik, Padma Lochan Panda and others trooped into the well and shouted slogans disrupting the business of the House.

The Speaker appealed to the Opposition members to go back to their seats and requested Congress member L B Mohapatra to ask the supplementary questions.

But Mr Mohapatra urged the Speaker to restore order in the House.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Raghunath Mohanty said the House had already discussed a motion on law and order situation for more than four hours, moved by the Opposition leaders.

He alleged that the Opposition members were stalling the proceedings again and again to score political mileage out of it and were not in a mood to run the House.

Congress member Tara Prasad Bahinipati tried to climb to the podium and snatch the microphone of the Speaker but was prevented by the Marshal.

As the din continued, the Speaker adjourned the House for ten minutes. Later, Chairman Yognedra Behera adjourned the House twice for a period of 58 minutes and finally for lunch at 1200 hrs till 1500 hrs.

UNI BD DP DPM SB AS1541