Oppn MPs, Rahul Gandhi, stage walkout in Lok Sabha over Sambhal violence

Almost the entire opposition in the Lok Sabha, including Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi, on Tuesday staged a brief walkout from the House over the recent violence in Uttar Pradesh's Sambhal.

As soon as the House assembled to take up the Question Hour, Samajwadi Party (SP) leader Akhilesh Yadav rose from his seat and raised the issue, seeking Speaker Om Birla's permission to speak on the subject.

"This is a very serious matter. Five people have lost their lives," Yadav was heard saying.

As the Speaker said members could raise the issue in the Zero Hour, Yadav and his party colleagues started to walk out in protest. Some SP members, meanwhile, rushed to the Well, raising slogans.

While the SP members were protesting in the Well of the House, DMK member A Raja was seen exhorting other opposition members, including those from the Congress, to rise from their seats and join the SP protest.

NCP and Shiv Sena-UBT members stood up in support of the Samajwadi Party MPs.

Some of the Congress members also rose to their feet and Leader of the Opposition in the House Rahul Gandhi came to the isle in support of the protest.

While the protest was on, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju reached out to Yadav to discuss the issue.

After some time, Yadav was seen gesturing his party's MPs to leave and the opposition members, including Gandhi, staged a walkout.

The MPs then returned to participate in the ongoing Question Hour.