Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala Assembly today witnessed uproarious scenes with the opposition LDF disrupting the proceedings demanding resignation of Chief Minister Oommen Chandy over former minister K B Ganesh Kumar`s resignation following charges of domestic violence.
The slogan shouting LDF members trooped into the well of the House accusing Chandy of shielding Kumar and not acting on the complaint by Yamini, the wife of the former minister.
As the opposition kept up the protest demanding that the submission of its leader V S Achuthanandan on the issue be taken up as the first item in the Zero Hour, Speaker G Karthikeyan asked the government to rush through the agenda and adjourned the House ahead of the day`s schedule for the second consecutive day.
Kumar, the lone member of Kerala Congress (B), a minor partner in the UDF, was forced to resign in the wake of his wife lodging a police complaint accusing him of subjecting her to domestic violence.
Police also registered separate FIRs yesterday against Kumar and Yamini on their respective complaints.
During the Question Hour itself, the LDF members had come
to the House wielding placards alleging that Chandy deceives Kumar`s wife, who was a victim of domestic violence by ignoring her complaint.
When the Zero Hour began, Achuthanandan stood up and asked the Speaker to consider his submission on the issue given this morning and withdraw the one he had given earlier on another topic.
Though the Speaker assured the Opposition Leader that his submission would be taken up as soon as the calling attention was over, opposition members insisted that the Kumar issue should be taken up straightaway.
At this juncture, Chandy stood up and said he was ready to reply to the Opposition Leader`s submission, if necessary straightaway. The Speaker, however, said the Chief Minister could wait till the calling attention was over.
With the Speaker refusing to accept their demand, the opposition members started protesting vehemently forcing the proceedings to be adjourned.
When the House reassembled after 50 minutes, the opposition declined to yield to the renewed plea of the Speaker for allowing the calling attention to be taken up first.
The Speaker, however, stood firm by his decision that the submission would not be given precedence by skipping the calling attention as that went against the rules and precedents of the House.
Following this, the LDF members rushed close to the Speaker`s podium and shouted slogans demanding the Chief Minister`s resignation.
The Speaker then asked the treasury benches to rush through the remaining business of the day including the bills and adjourned the House on completing the items on the agenda.
PTI
