On Monday, 78 Members of Parliament (MPs) from both Lok Sabha (Lower House) and Rajya Sabha (Upper House) in India were temporarily suspended. Last week, two youths breached security in the Lok Sabha, leading to a statement by Home Minister Amit Shah alleging negligence in security. In response to the incident, a decision was made to suspend those MPs involved in the recent incidents. Earlier, 14 MPs had been suspended following a similar incident. In total, 92 MPs have been temporarily suspended in the ongoing session of Parliament.
On Monday, 33 members from Lok Sabha and 45 members from Rajya Sabha were temporarily suspended. Among them, 77 MPs from Lok Sabha will not be able to participate for the remaining time of the current winter session, which will continue until December 22.
As a result of these events, the opposition parties’ coalition, India’s United Opposition, has weakened in the Rajya Sabha. In the Lok Sabha, they have lost one-third of their members.
Notable members among those suspended include Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, the leader of Congress in Lok Sabha, and Gaurav Gogoi, the deputy leader. According to the Rajya Sabha secretariat, this is the first time in the history of Rajya Sabha that such a large number of members have been suspended.
The two MPs who entered Lok Sabha causing the disruption had waved placards and sprayed colored smoke. Their assistants outside the Parliament also expressed similar protests. Later, during questioning, they stated that they were protesting against unemployment, issues faced by farmers, and the attraction of attention to the violence in Manipur.
The incident of the two youths entering Lok Sabha led to the Home Minister alleging negligence in security. Opposition leaders expressed anger over the suspension of MPs and stated that the government’s actions were akin to undermining democracy. Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury stated that the government is behaving like an autocracy and using Parliament like the BJP’s main office.
