Government negating constitution: CPI-M

The CPI-M on Tuesday said that the government's failure to put forth concrete proposals to break the parliament logjam and the subsequent suspension of 25 Congress parliamentarians showed that the NDA was "negating the very foundation of the constitution".

"Yesterday (Monday), we had gone to the all-party meeting thinking that the government would make some proposals. But they did not. They are trying to do away with the constitutional structure of making the government accountable to parliament," Communist Party of India-Marxist general secretary Sitaram Yechury told the media.

"It is negating the very foundation of the constitution," he said.

"We strongly object to the suspensions. We want the government to be accountable. Till the inquiry is completed, nobody can remain in office," he said.

"This is unprecedented in the history of Indian parliament. We completely disapprove. This protest will continue as of today," Yechury added.

CPI-M's Lok Sabha parliamentarian P. Karunakaran said the BJP members too brought placards inside the house at the beginning of the session.

"No speaker has made such a ruling before. It is impractical," he said, adding that "the Speaker has become an instrument in the hands of the government. We are boycotting the house proceedings".

Yechury said that according to reports, the government was backing off on many proposed amendments to the land bill. "If that is true, why did they indulge in drama of (issuing) ordinances in the last one year," he asked.

"A year was wasted. This is making a mockery of parliament. Why this farce for the whole year," the CPM-M leader added.

Yechury picked on the government over the Naga peace accord also, saying there was "no opportunity to even discuss such a major thing".

"If parliament is not functioning, then at least a note can be circulated to the people concerned. All this reflects the undermining of the procedures of democracy," he said.