In a show of opposition unity, members from various political parties staged protests in front of the Mahatma Gandhi statue inside the Parliament premises on Tuesday. The demonstrations were in response to the suspension of 92 MPs for the remainder of the ongoing winter session. Led by Congress President and Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, and Nationalist Congress Party President Sharad Pawar, the protesters displayed placards with slogans like “Democracy under siege, We wouldn’t be caged” and “Why PM and HM are silent.”
Expressing his discontent, Kharge stated, “This is not good for democracy,” highlighting the attempts made by several MPs to voice their opinions in Parliament. He criticized Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah for not participating in the House sessions while delivering lectures in Varanasi and Ahmedabad.
Samajwadi Party MP Ram Gopal Yadav remarked on the suspension, stating, “The way MPs are being suspended, it seems they (the ruling party) look at the opposition as a non-entity.” The suspended MPs also conducted protests at Parliament’s Makar Dwar.
The suspension of 78 MPs—33 from Lok Sabha and 45 from Rajya Sabha—on Monday marked the largest in the history of the Indian Parliament. The opposition’s demand for a statement from Home Minister Amit Shah on the December 13 incident triggered the ruckus that led to the suspensions. While 34 Rajya Sabha MPs face suspension for the entire Winter Session, the’misconduct’ of 11 others was referred to the Privileges Committee, which will submit its report in three months.
The ongoing winter session of Parliament is scheduled to conclude on December 22. The suspension of opposition MPs was attributed to’misconduct’ and failure to adhere to the directions of the Chair. The protests signify the growing tension and discord between the ruling and opposition parties in the current political landscape.