Both Houses of Parliament adjourned till 2 pm amid opposition protests over security breach

Both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha were adjourned till 2 pm on Monday (December 18) due to protests by opposition members who were demanding a statement by Union Home Minister Amit Shah and his resignation over the issue of breach of Parliament security.

After the House paid tributes to Emir of Kuwait Sheikh Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, who passed away on Saturday (December 16), Speaker Om Birla told the House about the steps taken by the Lok Sabha secretariat following the security breach incident on December 13 and sought cooperation from all members to run the House smoothly.

However, the opposition members were on their feet demanding a statement from Shah and his resignation. Some opposition MPs were also carrying placards with their demands written on it. Birla objected to the placards being brought into the House, saying it lowers the dignity of the House.

Parliamentary Affairs Pralhad Joshi also appealed to the opposition members "with folded hands" not to wave the placards, saying it was agreed at the meeting of the Business Advisory Committee not to carry placards.

The opposition MPs ignored the appeal of Birla as well as Joshi and continued their protests along with sloganeering, leading to the speaker announcing adjournment of the House.

Rajya Sabha witnessed two adjournments

Rajya Sabha proceedings witnessed two adjournments in the morning session on Monday and will meet again at 2 pm as opposition parties led by the Congress raised the issue of last week's Parliament security breach.

The House proceedings were first adjourned till 11.30.

When the House met again, Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar welcomed a parliamentary delegation from Sri Lanka to the Rajya Sabha.

Soon after, opposition MP started raising slogans demanding that the Union home minister make a statement in the House on the security breach matter. Some protesting members also carried placards.

As the sloganeering continued, Dhankhar cautioned Binoy Viswam of the CPI and another member. Later, the chairman adjourned the House proceedings till 2 pm.

Opposition MPs said that while Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah have made statements on the issue outside the Rajya Sabha, their demand for a discussion on the issue in the House was not being allowed.

Earlier in the day, Dhankhar rejected 22 notices given by opposition MPs under Rule 267, calling for setting aside the business of the day to take up a discussion on the issue of breach of security at the Parliament, saying that "they do not merit admittance".

The chairman did not mention the subject of the notices.

Opposition MPs rose in their places, demanding that the Chair at least mention the issue. When the Chair refused, they started raising slogans.

The Congress' K C Venugopal, Jairam Ramesh, and Rajeev Shukla said the prime minister and the home minister have spoken on the issue outside but opposition parties were not being allowed to raise the issue inside the House. A few members were seen standing in the aisles, holding placards.

Later, Tiruchi Siva of the DMK told PTI that all notices under Rule 267 were related to the security breach issue.

In a major security breach on the anniversary of the 2001 Parliament terror attack last Wednesday, two men - Sagar Sharma and Manoranjan D - jumped into the Lok Sabha chamber from the public gallery during the Zero Hour, released coloured smoke and shouted slogans, before being overpowered by the MPs. Two others, including a woman, were detained outside the Parliament complex for staging a protest.

(With inputs from agencies)