Total suspended MPs now 146; shows BJP’s scant regard for parliamentary democracy
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Thursday, December 21 suspended three more MPs, bringing to 146 the total number of MPs, spanning both houses, suspended for the concluding part of the winter session for breaking discipline.
The suspensions spanned a period of four days, starting December 14, for seeking statements from the home minister and the prime minister on the breach of security at the Lok Sabha on December 13 (the 22nd anniversary of the 2001 terrorist attack on Parliament) that led to two people jumping from the visitors’ gallery on to the MPs seating area carrying canisters spewing yellow smoke and shouting slogans.
The winter session for the Lok Sabha (and the Rajya Sabha) ended on the same day, a day ahead of schedule, so the three—Congress’s Deepak Baij, DK Suresh and Nakul Nath (son of veteran leader Kamal Nath)—were effectively suspended for a few hours only.
But what it continued to show was intolerance of the ruling BJP towards Opposition parties asking questions of it in Parliament, thus, effectively insulting Parliament and parliamentary democracy, of which India has been a torchbearer across the world.
