The Congress on Friday raised slogans in the Lok Sabha after they were not allowed to seek a clarification on the relief offered by the Centre following the Pune landslide.
Shortly after Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh made a statement on the disaster, Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge sought a clarification, which was turned down by Speaker Sumitra Mahjan citing House rules.
Angry Congress MPs then proceeded to raise slogans in the House and trooped into the well. Mr. Kharge said the MPs only wanted the Minister to clarify how much money had been released by the Centre for relief and rescue work as it was a national calamity. “I just wanted to know what compensation is given and what the rehabilitation programmes are. That is what I wanted to ask, nothing else,” he said.
When the Congress members persisted with their demand, Parliamentary Affairs Minister M. Venkaiah Naidu rose to make a statement. “As soon as we came to know of the incident, I discussed the matter with the Prime Minister, who directed the Home Minister to visit the place. The Home Minister told me that he wanted to make a statement about his visit and about what happened there. He made a statement in the House. Some members have some doubts in this regard. I would like to say that there is no such practice as far as Lok Sabha is concerned or there is no such rule by the Chair,” he said.
He denied that Mr. Singh had gone away and shown disrespect to the Opposition and said he had gone to the Rajya Sabha to make a statement about the same incident.
Earlier, the Home Minister said the landslide caused about 40 to 50 houses to cave in, trapping 158 persons under the debris. “Nine teams of the National Disaster Response Force, comprising about 380 personnel, with necessary equipment rushed to the spot. As per the report received at 8 a.m. today, eight injured persons could be rescued. Fifty-one bodies have been recovered. As per the 2011 census figures, the village had a population of 704,” he said.
The Minister said rescue efforts had been hampered by continuous rain, but the government had extended the required financial and other assistance for the immediate rescue and relief efforts.
“All possible support from all the Ministries of the Government of India will be provided to the Government of Maharashtra in the rescue and relief efforts as per the requirements. We need to see that appropriate lessons are drawn from the experience of this disaster so that we can initiate corrective measures,” he said.
