Bharatiya Janata Party and Congress reportedly exchanged blows over tabling of the report of Justice DK Trivedi Commission in Asaram Bapu case.
The Gujarat Assembly witnessed a ruckus as the members of the ruling BJP and Opposition Congress traded blows with each other. The ruckus began when Speaker Rajendra Trivedi stopped Vikram Madam of the Congress from speaking during the Question Hour. However, Madam insisted that he would speak. At that time, Congress MLA Amrish Der asked the speaker to allow Madam to speak. However, the speaker objected to the manner in which Der spoke. Following speaker’s comment, Madam and Der rushed to the Well of the House in protest.
This prompted the Speaker to suspend both the Congress MLAs for the day and they were taken out of the Assembly by the marshals. The entire episode enraged Congress MLA Pratap Dudhat who attacked the BJP’s Jagdish Panchal with a rod attached to a microphone.
Panchal was repeatedly asking Congress MLAs to remain silent when the speaker was making his point. After the attack, the speaker suspended Dudhat for the rest of the Budget Session. The house was also adjourned 10 minutes. After this, Der entered the House from the back door and attacked Panchal. The BJP members present in the House came to Panchal’s rescue and reportedly thrashed Der. The marshals were rushed in and brought the situation under control.
Speaking on the controversy, Gujarat Deputy CM Nitin Patel termed the incident as shameful. “What happened in Gujarat Vidhan Sabha is shameful. Congress MLA not only insulted the speaker but also became violent in the house,” Patel said. “House has been adjourned currently, once the session resumes we’ll decide what action needs to be taken,” he added.
By Fulva Rathod
