Parliamentary Affiars Minister Ananth Kumar accused Sonia Gandhi for disruption of Parliament proceedings
Congress leader Sonia Gandhi, furious at being accused by Union Minister Ananth Kumar of disrupting parliament, accused him of "lying" and said it was the government that was guilty of the logjam.
"I think it's shameful that the parliamentary affairs minister can speak such lies on the floor of the house," Sonia Gandhi told NDTV after bitter sparring in the Lok Sabha, which was adjourned well before time.
Ananth Kumar, the parliamentary affairs minister, had accused the opposition Congress of not allowing parliament to function and had repeatedly named Sonia Gandhi and her son Rahul Gandhi, the Congress president, while doing so.
"Congress has always been sitting patiently and requesting a discussion. It's the government and its allies that have not been allowing parliament to function," she said to NDTV.
The Budget Session of parliament was a lost cause with multiple disruptions and adjournments. The two houses didn't function properly for 23 days.
Yesterday, Ananth Kumar announced that lawmakers of the BJP-led ruling coalition would not take their salaries and allowances, voluntary giving up their earnings amid a long-running debate on a "no work, no pay" rule for MPs.
The move was seen as an attempt to blame the opposition for the disruptions as those parties had moved a no-confidence motion against the government.
Ananth Kumar said: "Congress is not letting the house run and just into drama outside at the (Mahatma) Gandhi statue."
He said the government was ready to discuss all issues but the opposition was simply not cooperating.
The opposition, however, has says parties such as the AIADMK, which are known to be friendly to the ruling BJP, blocked all business in house to ensure that the no-trust motion proposed by opposition parties was not taken up.