Four Congress MPs suspended from Lok Sabha session for protesting
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New Delhi: Four Congress MPs have been suspended from the rest of the Lok Sabha monsoon session for protesting inside the House with placards. Speaker Om Birla had warned them to hold placards outside if they wanted to protest.
Suspended MPs Manickam Tagore, Jothimani, Ramya Haridas, and TN Prathapan were protesting against the price hike. After the Speaker took action against them, they went to Mahatma Gandhi's statues on the parliament grounds and continued to protest by raising slogans.
They will be banned from the monsoon session which ends on August 12.
Congress's Deputy Leader in Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi said the MPs were holding placards about the price hike of gas cylinders and imposition of GST on items like flour and buttermilk. He added that the party had moved an adjournment motion demanding these issues are discussed in the House but it did not happen.
The Lok Sabha Speaker looked visibly upset at the protest and said he is willing to discuss price hike issues after 3 pm. He stated that placard protests will not be tolerated inside. "If you want to show placards, do it outside the house. I am ready for discussions, but don't think my kind-heartedness is a weakness."
When the session resumed after 3 pm, the Congress MPs returned with placards. They also demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi come to parliament and address their concerns over inflation.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi requested the Speaker to take action against them and condemned the protest. The Speaker further said that the people of the country want the parliament session to run. "But, it can't run like this. I will not allow such a situation to remain in the house."
Rajya Sabha Leader of the House Piyush Goyal said the government is ready to talk about inflation as it wants people to know what steps have been taken to fight the price hike. He noted that inflation used to be in double digits during the UPA rule but now it is around 7%.
Goyal further claimed that inflation in India is less in comparison to other countries. He also alleged that the Opposition is running away from the debate because they know they will be exposed.
Congress alleged that the NDA-led government is trying to intimidate the Opposition's MPs by suspending some of them. The party stated that its MPs were trying to raise issues that matter to the people.
