Ruckus over the three contentious farm laws continued in the Lok Sabha for the second consecutive day on Wednesday with opposition members raising slogans seeking repeal of these Acts enacted in September last year.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla adjourned the House till 4.30 p.m. within few minutes of it assembling for the day at 4 p.m. The second adjournment was announced till 5 p.m. as the pandemonium continued, and the third adjournment till 7 p.m. A similar scene was witnessed on Tuesday with almost no business transacted.
The lower house, during these brief sittings, managed to conduct laying of papers. The government also presented six Standing Committee reports on Finance; Labour; Industry; Science and Technology; Environment, Forests and Climate Change; and Transport, Tourism and Culture amind the din.
Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) former allies, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) and the Shiv Sena were among the over eight key opposition parties who took part in the protests.
The Congress, the DMK, the Samajwadi Party, the Trinamool Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party were among other parties whose members who trooped near the Speaker's podium every time as the house assembled at 4 p.m., 4.30 p.m. and 5 p.m., raising slogans like "Kisan Virodhi Bill Wapas Lo" (Take back anti-farmer laws), and "Kisano Par Tanashahi Nahi Chalegi" (No more dictatorship on farmers), "Modi Sarkar Hai, Hai (Modi government, shame, shame)".
Some of the MPs standing near the podium were holding placards reading "Kisan Marne Wale Kanoon Wapas Lo" (take back the laws that will kill farmers).
Members of the YSRCP, the Bahujan Samaj Party and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) were also raising slogans against the government from their seats.
From the Akali Dal, Harsimrat Kaur Badal rallied her party even as Arvind Sawant from the Shiv Sena led its members in the House to raise objections against the government. Harsimrat Kaur had resigned from the Modi ministry last year, leading to a rift in the SAD-BJP alliance after the farm Acts were enacted in Parliament.
The Speaker repeatedly urged protesting members to go back to their seats and let the House function, assuring them enough time to speak on their issues, but to no avail.
Birla also threatened to take action but the protest continued leading him to announce these three adjournments on brief intervals in the span of around 70 minutes.
Congress' Leader in the House Adhir Ranjan Choudhury requested the Speaker amid uproar that the government should first discuss farmers' issue on priority.
Refering to the similar protest in Rajya Sabha, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said both government and opposition parties in a meeting decided earlier in the day to let the House function by allowing 15 hours discussion on motion of thanks to President's address, which is a tradition, and then take farmers's issue.
"I am not aware why the opposition changed its strategy," Joshi said.
As the pandemonium continued, the Speaker finally adjourned the House till 7 p.m.
The opposition raising voice in support of thousands of farmers protesting on various Delhi borders since November 26 seeking withdrawal of these farm laws terming them "black laws" and "anti-farmer".
