Lok Sabha adjourned till 12 noon amid oppn protest over Manipur issue

New Delhi, Jul 28 (PTI) Lok Sabha was adjourned till 12 noon on Friday amid a protest by opposition members over the Manipur issue.

As soon as the House met at 11 am, the opposition members were on their feet demanding an immediate discussion on the no-confidence motion moved by the Congress against the Modi government.

Speaker Om Birla asked the opposition MPs to take part in the proceedings.

“Don’t you want to allow the House to function? Question Hour, where government replies to the questions of the members, is very important,” he said.

Congress leader in the House Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury stood up and said that on May 10, 1978, the debate on the no-confidence motion was started immediately after it was moved.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi reacted sharply to Chowdhary’s remarks, saying everything is happening according to the rules and the debate on a no-confidence motion can be started within 10 days.

“We have the numbers with us. If you have the numbers, defeat our bills,” he said.

As the protests and sloganeering continued, the Speaker adjourned the House till 12 noon.

The Manipur violence has rocked proceedings in both Houses of Parliament ever since the Monsoon session began on July 20, with the opposition demanding a statement from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and a discussion on the situation in the northeastern state.

The opposition subsequently moved a no-confidence motion against the Modi government to force the prime minister to speak on the Manipur violence.

A video of two women being paraded naked by a mob in a Manipur village on May 4 went viral online, triggering nationwide outrage. Seven people have been arrested so far in the case.

On Thursday, the government informed the Supreme Court that the probe into the case has been transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).