BJP MLAs stage walkout in Bengal Assembly as Speaker refuses discussion on Birbhum killings

Opposition BJP MLAs staged a walkout in the Assembly on Thursday after the Speaker refused to grant time for a discussion on the recent Birbhum killings.

As soon as the members assembled, Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari, along with other saffron party MLAs, rushed to the well of the House, demanding a discussion on the violence in Birbhum that left eight dead, including two children.

The saffron party legislators held placards that had 'Manush mara sarkar, aar nei dorkar' (we do not want this government which kills people) written on them.

As Speaker Biman Banerjee turned down the demand, the BJP MLAs staged a walkout.

Replying to a debate on the budgetary grant of Rs 17,602 crore for her department, minister of state for health and family welfare Chandrima Bhattacharya said opposition members were keener on creating a ruckus than participating in the discussion on governance-related matters.

She pointed out that the Left Front government, during 2010-2011, had allocated just Rs 3,584 crore for the health department, and the grant under the TMC rule swelled to Rs 17,602 crore.

Bhattacharya also said that the Mamata Banerjee government had to incur huge expenditure for managing the situation that arose out of COVID-19 pandemic.

She noted that the government set up oxygen plants in 27 hospitals and administered COVID-19 vaccines -- including the first, second and booster doses -- to 13.9 crore people.

She rued that the opposition failed to see these achievements of the TMC government and preferred to criticise the dispensation over other matters.

The minister further stated that the TMC government spent Rs 4,092 crore for its health scheme - Swasthya Sathi - which offers cover for secondary and tertiary care.

She claimed that the Centre's Ayushman Bharat health scheme was a copy of Swasthya Sathi.

Bhattacharya maintained that the number of nursing training schools, nursing colleges and multi-super speciality hospitals has also risen in the state over the past decade.

The budget for the health department was passed by a voice vote during the day.