Stalemate in Odisha Assembly for fourth consecutive day over farmer’s suicide
17 March, Bhubaneswar
Stalemate continued in the Odisha Assembly for the fourth consecutive day today as the Opposition Congress and the BJP members stalled the business of the house demanding house committee to probe into the suicide of farmers in the state.
Speaker Niranjan Pujari was forced to adjourn the house several times right from 1031 hrs till 1703 hrs as the agitated opposition members created a ruckus inside the well of the house and insisted on their demand for a ruling from the Speaker about their demand for a probe into the suicide of farmers in the state. Like the other days the trouble started today when the house met at 1030 hrs to take up the question hour business.
The Opposition Congress members soon rushed to the well of the house and shouted slogans in support of their demand. Opposition Chief whip Tara Prasad Bahinipati and his party colleagues demanded a discussion on the farmers suicide in the house suspending all other business.
The Speaker, however, adjourned the house at 1031 hrs till 1131 hrs When the house reassembled at 1131 hrs after the adjournment, the BJP members joined with the Congress members and raised slogan inside the well of the house forcing the Speaker to adjourn again at 1131 hrs till 1250 hrs. Subsequently, the house was adjourned from 1251 hrs to 1500 hrs for lunch without transacting any business.
There was no change in the situation during the post lunch session and the Speaker again adjourned it from 1503 hrs to 1603 hrs and again till 1709 hrs as the Opposition continued their slogan shouting on the issue. The demand for discussion on School and Mass Education and Higher Education could not be taken up for debate due to protest by the Opposition members.
Amidst slogan shouting, Mr Bahinipati said the incidents of farmers suicide was rising every day. Despite repeated demand the Speaker was not giving his ruling over the issue. The Baragarah District Collector who has given a false report on the suicide of Hadu Bargati in Kendapali village of Baragarh district and misled the house has not yet been suspended.
The Speaker also did not allow a discussion on the adjournment notice given by the Congress on the issue. The suicide of Hadu Bargati, a farmer of Kendapalli in Bargarh district, has rocked the house after Agriculture Minister Pradeep Maharathi denied that the farmer had committed suicide due to loan burden and crop failure. He instead maintained that the farmer had committed suicide due to family dispute which was strongly opposed by the family members of the deceased farmer and the Opposition members.
The house has been witnessing uproarious scenes over the issue leading to series of adjournments for the last four days as the BJP and the Congress have been demanding a probe into the farmer’s suicide by a house committee or the privilege committee, action against the Agriculture Minister and the Baragarh district Collector for misleading the house and a solution to farmers problem to prevent rising suicide among them.BM