NEW DELHI, 3 March 2007 — Claiming that there was a “political conspiracy” against their party leader, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mulayam Singh Yadav, Samajwadi Party (SP) members disrupted proceedings in both houses of the Parliament yesterday.
The SP members protested against the Supreme Court order (March 1) initiating a Central Board of Investigation (CBI) probe regarding Mulayam’s assets, disproportionate to his known sources of income. The apex court also directed preliminary inquiry into assets of Mulayam’s son Akhilesh Mulayam, who is a legislator, Akhilesh’s wife Dimple and other son Prateek.
In the Lok Sabha, SP leader Ramgopal Mulayam wanted the question hour to be suspended to discuss the issue. “There has been a political conspiracy to falsely implicate Mulayam Singh Yadav,” he said. Though Speaker Somnath Chatterjee asked him to raise the issue later at 12 noon, SP legislators gathered near the speaker’s podium and raised anti-Congress slogans. “Congress ki jhooti saazish nahi chalegi,” (False conspiracy of Congress will not work).
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Priyaranjan Dasmunshi said that the government had nothing to do with the issue. However, SP members continued shouting that the case was based on false allegations. Legislators belonging to Telugu Desam Party (TDP) supported SP members.
When the SP members did not listen to the speaker’s request, he adjourned the house for half an hour at 11 05 a.m. The house was adjourned again soon after it met the second time as SP members continued raising a din. When the house met for the third time, legislators belonging to Congress and SP were engaged in a verbal duel, raising slogans against each other, compelling the speaker to adjourn Lok Sabha for the day. However, the speaker managed to let ministers table papers listed in the business. Congress members shouted slogans such as “Mulayam hatao, desh bachao (Remove Mulayam, save nation).”
Similar was the scene in the Rajya Sabha, where SP members began by trooping into the well with Amar Singh waving a CD. Singh released the audio CD on Thursday of the alleged conversation in which, he claimed, the petitioner, who had sought a probe into Mulayam’s assets, was making certain remarks against the judiciary.
Shouting slogans against the CBI, they accused the Congress-led government of conspiring against the SP. “Tanashahi band karo” (Stop dictatorship).
