SAD-BJP, AAP stage walkout of Punjab Assembly

Noisy scenes were witnessed in the Punjab Assembly on Wednesday, with the SAD, BJP and AAP MLAs staging a walkout of the House on different issues, including condemning Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan over his remarks on the Pulwama attack.

Akali MLA Bikram Singh Majithia and Congress MLAs, Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and Kuljeet Singh Nagra, also engaged in personal attacks during the ongoing Budget Session.

During the Zero Hour, the SAD and BJP MLAs, led by Parminder Singh Dhindsa, urged the speaker to allow them to move a resolution, condemning the Pakistani prime minister for his statement after the Pulwama terror attack in which 40 CRPF personnel were killed.

Khan had warned that "Pakistan would retaliate if India carried out an attack" after the terror attack.

"The Pakistani prime minister had tried to threaten India with his reported statement," Dhindsa said, demanding that statement should be condemned in the strongest possible words. Speaker Rana KP Singh said their resolution was under consideration.

When Akalis and BJP members stuck to their demand, state minister and Congress MLA Sukhjinder Randhawa said they should meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi and urge him to " launch a war" against Pakistan to "break the neighbouring nation into two" as it was done in 1971 when Indira Gandhi was the prime minister.

Randhawa lashed out at the Akalis and the BJP and also flashed a picture of Masood Azhar, founder of terrorist group Jaish-e-Mohammed, which was responsible for the attack, in the House.

Akalis and BJP members stormed into the Well of the House and raised slogans. They then staged a walkout of the House and the speaker rejected the Akali Dal's resolution.

Earlier during the Question Hour, Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLAs staged a walkout over the issue of proclaimed offenders in the state.

Replying to the question raised by AAP Mansa MLA Nazar Singh Manshahia, Cabinet minister Brahm Mohindra, on behalf of Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, informed the House that the state police had declared 7,353 proclaimed offenders and the government had set up a PO cell under the supervision of senior level officers to nab them.

Manshahia demanded that the pictures of all proclaimed offender be displayed on public platforms.

This was supported by Leader of Opposition (LoP) Harpal Singh Cheema who alleged the criminals were enjoying the political patronage. He claimed that no action had been taken in case of a Congress leader's personal assistant who had been declared a proclaimed offender.

Not satisfied with reply, all AAP MLAs, including three rebel legislators Kanwar Sandhu, Pirmal Singh Khalsa also staged a walkout.

Later, Majithia, Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa and Kuljeet Singh Nagra engaged in personal attacks and made some "objectionable remarks" against each other.

Punjab minister Aruna Chaudhary and AAP MLA Harpal Singh Cheema sparred over the issue of buses. Aruna Chaudhary accused the AAP government in Delhi of not allowing the Punjab government's buses till the Delhi international airport and claimed the transport minister could not be contacted.

Cheema assured the minister that he would arrange a meeting with the Delhi transport minister to resolve the issue.