New Delhi, Monday, March 08, 2010: Both the Houses were adjourned today following nosiy disruptions over Women’s Reservation Bill. The Rajya Sabha was adjourned for a second time on Monday after Samajwadi Party MPs disrupted the proceedings demanding job quotas for Dalit Christians and Dalit Muslims.

When the House re-assembled at noon after an earlier adjournment, SP members started shouting slogans as some papers were laid on the table. In the event no one could hear what Deputy Chairman K. Rehman was saying.

Minister for Women and Child Development Krishna Tirath read out a statement on the international Women’s Day. The house is scheduled to pass a bill reserving a third of seats in all legislatures for women.

But the SP MPs first demanded a discussion on the reports of the National Commission for Religious and Linguistic Minorities headed by Justice (retd) Ranganath Misra that favours job quotas for Dalit Muslims and Dalit Christians.

The chair ruled this out saying no notice had been served for the debate. As a handful of SP members advanced menacingly towards the presiding officer, the house was adjourned till 2 p.m.

Earlier, when the house assembled at 11, Chairman Hamid Ansari read out a message on the international Women’s Day saying that among others “women have to be included in the decision making process”.

SP, BSP and RJD members strongly opposed the Women’s Reservation Bill in the Lok Sabha, with one of them even trying to climb the Speaker’s podium, leading to adjournment of the House till lunch.
The Bill, slated to be introduced in the Rajya Sabha, created storm in the Lok Sabha soon after Speaker Meira Kumar welcomed a Croatian delegation and read out a reference on International Women’s Day.

The moment Kumar called for Question Hour, SP, BSP and RJD members trooped into the Well demanding quotas for OBC, Dalit and Muslim women within the proposed law to reserve 33 per cent seats in Parliament and State assemblies for the fair sex.

The Speaker refused to adjourn the House and carried on with the Question Hour. SP chief Mulayam Singh Yadav gestured his party members to move forward and himself marched to the Well from the side of the treasury benches. Dara Singh Chauhan (BSP) and Lalu Prasad and Umashanker Singh (both RJD) followed Yadav.

At this moment, Mithilesh Kumar (SP) tried to climb the table placed in front of the Speaker prompting Leader of the House Pranab Mukherjee to request Yadav to control his members. On the SP chief’s directive, the members retreated a bit but stayed put in the Well and continued to raise slogans.

(News agency)