RS proceedings adjourned over demand for postal exam in Tamil

Proceedings of the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday (July 16) were adjourned thrice during the pre-lunch period after repeated protests by Tamil parties led by the AIADMK over their demand that the exam for postmen be held in Tamil language.

The protests started soon after the listing of papers in the House, with AIADMK members shouting slogans and demanding that the government cancel the postal department exam for recruitment of postmen and other posts and hold it afresh by including Tamil as a language for taking the exam.

Tamil parties have been protesting that questions in the postal department’s examination for appointments of postmen and assistants in rural areas held on Sunday were only in Hindi and English, and not Tamil. The AIADMK joined the protests by DMK, CPI, and CPI-M members in the morning.

Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu first ordered stopping of the transmission of House proceedings on television and then adjourned proceedings till 1200 hours. Later, when the House met at 12.00, the AIADMK continued with their protests demanding cancellation of the exam.

As Deputy chairman Harivansh appealed for allowing the Question Hour to be taken up, members of AIADMK stormed the well. They were joined by the DMK and TMC. They raised slogans of “Cancel the exam”, with the deputy chairman saying that this is not good.

Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs V Muraleedharan said that the Chairman has already held a meeting with the Communications Minister and has agreed to clarify in the House on Wednesday (July 17).

“The Chairman had called union communications minister Ravi Shankar Prasad to his chamber. He has discussed the issue with the chairman and the minister is ready to come to the House and explain the position in the House tomorrow,” he told the House amid the din.

Deputy chairman said that the chairman has called the minister and he will explain tomorrow in the house. “Please allow the House to function and the Question Hour to take place. The Communications Minister will come tomorrow. He is busy in Lok Sabha. The Chairman has already held a meeting. The minister has already given an assurance on this issue,” Harivansh said.

As his requests to allow the House to function went unheeded, the deputy chairman adjourned the House for 15 minutes, six minutes after noon. When the House met again, AIADMK members again stormed the well and raised slogans.

This time they were joined by the DMK, Congress, CPI, and CPI-M, and the deputy chairman adjourned the House till 2 PM. Earlier in the morning, Naidu said that the issue was raised by the AIADMK on Monday (July 15) and that he cannot order the government to respond to their demands.

“This is not allowed as per rules,” he said. “I will not direct, it is very unfair.” He repeatedly asked members to take their places. He adjourned proceedings till 1200 hours after his pleas went unheeded.

On July 15, AIADMK leader A Navaneethakrishnan had raised the issue through a Zero Hour mention, saying questions in the postal department’s examination for appointments of postmen and assistants in rural areas held on Sunday were only in Hindi and English, and not Tamil.

“I urge the central government to cancel the postal department examinations held yesterday. The reasons are very simple and also very compulsive,” he had said. Members of the AIADMK, which is ruling in Tamil Nadu, on Monday said that the government had not responded to their request.

Naidu asked V Maitreyan, who was leading the AIADMK protests, to lower his voice. To this, Maitreyan said that Tamil Nadu is burning and that he cannot lower his voice. Soon after the House met, the House congratulated Dutee Chand and other Indian medal winners at the Universiade, the World University Games, in Naples.