BJP demands extension of U'khand Assembly session

Opposition BJP today created a ruckus in Uttarakhand Assembly demanding extension of the ongoing session by three days which prompted Speaker Govind Singh Kunjwal to adjourn it twice before lunch.
As soon as the House assembled for the day, BJP MLAs led by Leader of Opposition Ajay Bhatt stood up demanding extension of the session by at least three days to discuss issues of public interest including the mid-June calamity, law and order situation in the state and mining policy.
The Speaker, however, asked them to resume their seats and listen to the chief minister's scheduled reply on the debate over the June flashfloods.

Their suggestion for an extension of the session may come up for consideration later, he said.
This enraged the Opposition members who insisted on their demand saying it was imperative to discuss the law and order situation in the state in view of the recent firing incident at a cabinet minister's residence in which two persons were injured.
Noisy scenes were witnessed as Kunjwal refused to concede the opposition's demand. When repeated requests by the Speaker fell on deaf ears, he adjourned the House till noon.

When the house reassembled after its first adjournment the din continued with the opposition taking exception to passage of supplementary budget yesterday despite a debate still under progress in the House under section 310.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Indira Hridayesh contended that it was done after taking the the opposition into confidence at the last meeting of the Business Advisory Committee.
However, opposition MLAs including Bhatt and former Chief Minister Ramesh Pokhariyal Nishank refused to listen to her terming it as an act of treachery and violation of parliamentary norms.
As the House plunged into din once again, the Speaker adjourned the proceedings till lunch.
Talking to reporters outside the state assembly the Leader of Opposition accused the state government of shying away from a debate on the law and order situation in the House as it had touched an all time low.

"The state government does not want an extension of the session as it feels a debate on law and order in the House will expose the chinks in its armour," Bhatt said.
Recently, a Congress MLA had allegedly opened fire during a party at state agriculture minister Harak Singh Rawat's official residence, leaving two persons injured.
However, police have registered a case against an unidentified person in connection with the incident.