Rajya Sabha discussed the situation following increasing incidents of cow vigilantism.
The third day of parliament's Monsoon session was stormy, with both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha being repeatedly adjourned amid uproar. In one of the shortest sessions, where the legislative business includes at least 12 bills, the opposition took on the government over multiple issues.
The issue of mob violence found resonance in Rajya Sabha with a discussion on the atrocities against minorities and Dalits. The Opposition alleged the involvement of "some members" of the BJP and Hindu groups in these incidents. The government said such violence should not be given communal colour.
Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad, who initiated the debate, said no Opposition party benefits from these incidents. "One political party, the ruling party is benefiting. This is done for political harvest," he said. While earlier, such violence was at an individual level, now it was organized and done with a basic understanding and hence no arrests have been made in the incidents.
Protests started after senior Samajwadi Party leader Naresh Agarwal asked if the government was considering a new law against incidences of mob violence and lynching and got a negative response from junior home minister Hansraj Ahir.
As Congress's Digvijaya Singh seconded the demand, Mr Ahir said, "The Prime Minister has said that cow vigilantes shouldn't take law in their hands, MHA issued advisory. Dragging BJP into this not right".
"There should be a new law," senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal later told NDTV. "The Prime Minister should take the initiative, but he has put the onus on states".
At an all-party meeting on Sunday, PM Narendra Modi had spoken out against cow vigilantism again, and said the states should take strong action against it. The Centre has already sent an advisory to the states regarding action. The Prime Minister had also hit out at the opposition, saying there was an attempt to give "communal colour to cow vigilantism and derive political mileage".
The government had sought the opposition's cooperation in passing around two dozen bills in the session, which will have only 20 sittings. But a united Opposition - a block of 18 parties - have identified several issues to target the government with. The list includes the impact of the flagship Goods and Services Tax, PM Modi's shock decision to ban high-denomination notes last year, and what they called the government's "political vendetta" through criminal cases against opposition leaders like Lalu Yadav.
The chaos comes a day after Dalit powerhouse Mayawati resigned in protest after deputy chairman P J Kurien asked her to cut short her speech on atrocities against Dalits. Her three-page resignation letter, however, will not be accepted as she did not follow House procedure.