NEW DELHI: The first day of Parliament’s monsoon session was a washout as opposition parties protested over a host of issues, including theft of donations at Ayodhya Ram temple and NEET paper leak, leading to frequent adjournments in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha before proceedings were called off for the day.Amid the brief moments for which LS sat between several adjournments, law minister Arjun Ram Meghwal introduced a bill to replace an ordinance, which has increased the number of Supreme Court judges from 34 to 38, including the Chief Justice of India.In RS, leader of the opposition Mallikarjun Kharge raised the issue of NEET paper leak, which he called a scam, affecting the future of lakhs of students. “Today thousands of students have gathered at Jantar Mantar. There has been a lathi charge, and govt is trying to stifle dissent,” drawing protests from treasury benches and prompting Chairman C P Radhakrishnan to adjourn the House for half an hour.The protests, however, could not obscure the changed arithmetic. With rebel TMC MPs in LS being allotted different seats after their entry in the BJP-led NDA, what stood out was the front-row seat given to their head Sudip Bandyopadhyay. He occupied the seat of TMC parliamentary party leader Abhishek Banerjee, who now commands a group of eight MPs from earlier 28 and no longer has a front seat.It could have been the distinguishing feature of the opening day but for the protests, which continued in the two Houses. Despite appeals from LS Speaker Om Birla and RS Chairman Radhakrishnan for order, protests continued in the two Houses.Birla chided some opposition members for raising slogans when obituary references were read out on the demise of former MPs, saying it was not a good precedent. He later asked protesting opposition members to maintain order and called for allowing other members to participate in parliamentary proceedings, but in vain. The House reassembled six times before being adjourned for the day.RS was adjourned five times during the day. Earlier, soon after the recently elected MPs took oath, Radhakrishan invoked the “collective responsibility” of members to utilise time to debate and decide on issues of national importance. While urging members to remain focused on the timely disposal of business, he said every disruption delays discussion on matters affecting the nation and the people they represent.
‘No decision on ethanol blending beyond 20%’
Amid concerns over E20 petrol, govt Monday said no decision had been taken to increase ethanol blending in petrol beyond 20%, reports Atul Mathur. Govt informed Parliament there was no proposal to make lower-blended fuel or pure petrol available at select retail outlets. It ruled out any immediate move to introduce ethanol blending in diesel. “Any move to increase blending in petrol beyond 20% would be based on scientific and technical studies and consultations with stakeholders,” minister of state for petroleum and natural gas Suresh Gopi told Rajya Sabha.
