Trinamool Congress MP Derek O’Brien on Sunday charged towards Deputy Chairman Harivansh Narayan Singh’s podium tried to tear the rule book during a debate in Rajya Sabha on the farm bills.
Later, however, he denied having torn the book and said, “If anybody can show me footage of me tearing the book, I will resign from Rajya Sabha tomorrow morning. My father was a publisher and I will never tear a page. Today, democracy was murdered.”
O’Brien also rushed to the Well of the house to protest against the Centre over the contentious agriculture bills. Opposition members charged towards the podium of the presiding officer, flung the rule book at him, tore official papers and heckled him over their demand for a division of vote.
The Upper House, which witnessed a brief adjournment due to the pandemonium, passed by voice vote the Farmer’s Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020, and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020. The bills have already been passed by Lok Sabha and will now go to the President for his assent before they are notified as laws.
The government is now considering moving a motion against lawmakers who treated the Deputy Chairman badly in Rajya Sabha. The Prime Minister will be apprised of the same after a meeting with the Vice President.
Trouble started when the sitting of the House was extended beyond the scheduled time to allow passage of the bills. Opposition members, who felt such a move should be resorted to only by consensus, rushed into the Well, shouting slogans against the government and accusing it of being anti-farmer.
This forced Agriculture Minister Narendra Singh Tomar to cut short his reply and Deputy Chairman Harivansh took up the approval of the bills.
Four opposition sponsored motions to send the two bills to a House panel for greater scrutiny were negated by voice vote, but the Congress, TMC, CPM and DMK members sought a division of vote on the issue.
As Harivansh over-ruled them saying division of votes can take place only when members are on their seat, O’Brien charged towards the podium, thrusting the rule book into the face of the Deputy Chairman.
House marshals thwarted the move as also blocking a book that was flung towards Harivansh. An attempt was also made to pulls microphones away from the chair but the marshals physically stopped that from happening.
DMK leader Tiruchi Siva, who along with O’Brien, K C Venugopal of Congress and K K Ragesh of CPM had moved resolutions for sending the bills to the select committee, tore papers and flung them into the air.
Harivansh, who asked members to go back to their places and not come into the Well due to the Covid-19 protocol requiring physical separation, first muted the audio of the live proceedings but with the ruckus continuing, he adjourned the proceedings for 15 minutes.
When the House reassembled, opposition parties chanted slogans but this did not prevent Harivansh from putting the bill to voice vote.
As the first bill got voice approval of the House and motions for sending it to a select committee were rejected, at least two members tried to climb on the table of Rajya Sabha officers but were pulled down.
The TMC MP later tweeted a video saying, “Opposition parties had resolutions to send this to a select committee. This government knew that they were not in a position to pass this bill. There were 13 or 14 oppositon parties, but we saw the brutal murder of our Parliamentary system, murder of our democracy. Even Rajya Sabha TV had been cut away so we cannot show out protests. I was handled by four or five marshals. Media was not here, now we know why.”
“Rajya Sabha TV was cut off and censored. We have footage of what happened in Rajya Sabha. Members asked for a vote, we were denied it. It is unprecedented. Do not spread this kind of propaganda that I tore up a rule book. MPs had to shoot the footage, we will release it at the right time. Bottomline- Opposition wanted a vote on the farmer’s bill and BJP did not want a vote because they did not have the numbers. This story does nto end here. BJP told to it’s ahistoric day, but it’s a sad day for Parliamentary democracy,” he said in another video.
He had also posted a video of his speech in the Rajya Sabha, where he can be heard saying, “How qualified am I to speak on these bills. I belong to a party called the Trinamool Congress. Let me take you back to the year 2006. The chairperson of this party (Mamata Banerjee), for the sake of farmers, had put her life at risk during a 26-day hunger strike. She was fighting for the rights of farmers.”
“Seven years ago, 4th of September, 2013, Land Acquisition Bills, we got only 13 votes… but we opposed the bill to uphold the rights of farmers. In 2016, the Supreme Court said the land had to be given back. But then they would say it’s history. Last six years, Krishi Karman award went to Bengal. You compare the central government scheme to state scheme, Bengal scheme is better,” he is heard saying.
“Yesterday, PM Modi said that the Opposition is trying to mislead the farmers. What credibility do you have to make the statement? You promised to double farmer incomes by 2022. At current rates, farmer incomes will not be doubled before 2028.”
“In Bengal, from Rs 90,000 in 2011, farmer income has got doubled, actually trebled to Rs 2,90,000. If the food security system was a body, the Minimum Support Price is one of the four concerns about farm bills. We are opposing all four- state’s rights, PDS, procurement. Don’t bring down the debate to MSP only,” he said.
“Who are they (BJP) trying to fool… for the consumers – what is the protection against hoarding, price rise, profiteering. This is now beyond the farmers. These bills have to be discussed and debated. You (BJP) have the rights to have your way. We have the right to keep you on track,” the Trinamool MP had said earlier in the day.
(With PTI inputs)
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