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When Lalu became the
‘prime minister' and Munde the ‘speaker'
The Hindu, August
21, 2010
After the Lok
Sabha was adjourned for the day on Friday, members of the
Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Samajwadi Party (SP) remained
inside the well of the House and staged a sit-in to press their
demands.
RJD chief Lalu
Prasad later told journalists outside the Parliament House that
a “mock session” of the House was enacted, wherein he acted as
prime minister, BJP leader Gopinath Munde as the speaker, and SP
leader Mulayam Singh as the deputy speaker.
As the members
continued to protest inside the well of the House, the press
gallery was cleared. Members of the Bharatiya Janata Party and
the Janata Dal (United) — who were miffed at the Indian Medical
Council (Amendment) Bill 2010 being passed without discussion —
created an uproar, tore apart the list of business for the day,
called it a “murder of democracy,” and staged a dharna inside
the House.
Reacting to reports
of the “mock session,” Speaker Meira Kumar said Parliament was
the ‘temple of democracy' and irreverence should not be shown
towards it.
During the “mock
session,” which lasted more than an hour, “debates” were held,
including one on the Indian Medical Council Bill, in which
Maneka Gandhi (BJP) participated.
“We will see what is
to be done on Saturday. I heard the views of the House and the
people's government decided to reject outright the bills
cleared,” Mr. Prasad said. The “members of the new national
government” would meet again on Saturday and discuss the salary
and other bills.
Mr. Prasad alleged
that the UPA government was acting in an “undemocratic and
unconstitutional” manner by clearing important bills without
debate and that it was not accepting the members' demands.
Besides the medical
council bill, the “House” also approved amendments to the trade
marks (amendment) bill.
Mr. Munde blamed the
government for the bedlam in the Lok Sabha. It was the
responsibility of the government and the Parliamentary Affairs
Ministry to ensure order in the House.
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http://www.thehindu.com/
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