New Delhi:
There was hope that the Winter Session of Parliament would finally take off today, after the government and the Left agreed to a discussion on price rise in the Lok Sabha, under a rule which does not entail voting,
But the stalemate over proceedings continued today as the House was adjourned for the third successive day, following uproar when members of the Congress joined the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) in raising the Telangana issue.
Leader of the Opposition Sushma Swaraj later accused the Congress of being responsible for the disruption in Parliament. "The party was failing to run the House and control its MPs," she said.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, who has involved in efforts to break the logjam, questioned MPs from his party for their conduct in disrupting House proceedings.
Proceedings have been stalled since the session began on Tuesday. The government seemed to have finally bought some peace with the Left as well as the BJP through back-channel talks over the past two days - the Left was to initiate a discussion on price rise and the BJP would get to take up the issue of black money through L K Advani.
The Left-backed adjournment motion on price rise will be taken up under rule 193, which envisages a discussion without voting. A vote could embarrass the government if some of its allies went along with the Opposition on the issue of price rise.
Gurudas Dasgupta of the Communist Party of India (CPI) would initiate the discussion on price rise in Lok Sabha this afternoon, sources had said.
But soon after the House reassembled at 2 pm, TRS MPS including its chief K Chandrasekhar Rao came to the well of the House and raised pro-Telangana slogans. They were soon joined by Congress MPs.
Leader of the Opposition Sushma Swaraj was seen requesting the members to let the proceedings begin. The Speaker adjourned the Lok Sabha for the day as the uproar continued.
Ms Swaraj said that at the all-party meeting with Speaker Meira Kumar and Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, the BJP had agreed to a debate on price rise today and on black money on Monday. But government ministers were missing when Congress MPs from Telangana disrupted the proceedings, she said.
Today was the third consecutive day that the Question Hour could not be taken up in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.
Both Houses of Parliament were earlier adjourned till 2 pm following uproar by the Opposition on issues like price rise, demand for Telangana and special status to flood-ravaged Odisha. Proceedings could resume only for just a few minutes after noon before the Houses were adjourned for the second time on Thursday.
Soon after the Lok Sabha met, Samajwadi Party and RJD members raised slogans against price rise and some of them walked to the Well. BSP members too were agitated over the issue of inflation, while those from the Left parties protested from their seats.
TRS members K Chandrasekhar Rao and Vijayashanti too entered the Well and raised their demand for Telangana statehood.
BJD members shouted slogans demanding special status to flood-affected Odisha.
Members of the BJP, whose senior leader L K Advani had given an adjournment notice on black money, were on their feet demanding that the motion be accepted.
Earlier, when the House met for the day, the Speaker welcomed a high-level delegation from Bhutan led by its Parliament Speaker Dasho Ugen Dorje. The House also condoled the death of those killed in Odisha floods after the Speaker expressed concern over the loss of lives and livestock in the state.