The ruling Bahujan Samaj Party got the 2011-12 budget passed by voice vote in just 15 minutes on Monday even as pandemonium prevailed in the House. The Vidhan Sabha was then adjourned sine die by Speaker Sukhdev Rajbhar.
Following the adjournment, members of the Samajwadi Party, the Bharatiya Janata Party, the Congress and the Rashtriya Lok Dal began a dharna in the well of the House to protest the government's precipitate action.
As per the agenda, the Assembly was to work till March 1. A supplementary agenda enabled the government to get the budget passed in a jiffy.
A piece of legislation to amend the Uttar Pradesh Municipal Corporation Act, 1961, was also passed by voice vote. Under the Uttar Pradesh Local Bodies Autonomous Rule (Amendment) Bill, 2011, which the Opposition termed a black law, mayors and chairmen of the local bodies will not be elected by the people.
It was decided that the SP, BJP and Congress delegations would meet Governor B.L. Joshi separately to register their protest against the legislation. Congress Legislature Party leader Pramod Tiwari said later that he had urged the Governor to withhold assent for the Bill.
In fact, it was the protest against the move to hold indirect elections for mayors and chairmen of the local bodies that dominated the proceedings. The question hour was lost to a 70-minure adjournment.
The issue was raised by Ambika Chaudhary of the SP, when the House assembled at 11 a.m. He said a notice was served under rule 311 for a discussion and accused the government of trying to capture the local bodies through undemocratic means.
Mr. Chaudhary was supported by his party colleague Mohammad Azam Khan, who said the proposal violated the democratic principles of governance. The SP MLAs entered the well when Parliamentary Affairs Minister Lalji Verma said the government had the authority to change the rules. The House was initially adjourned for 30 minutes, and then for 40 more minutes.
The SP members staged a dharna in the well. They stayed put when the Vidhan Sabha reassembled for the zero hour at 12.20 p.m. As his pleas for order proved futile, Mr. Rajbhar took up the remaining agenda, including the passage of the controversial bill. The SP MLAs continued to shout slogans against the government, some climbing the reporters' desk as a form of protest.
The Congress and RLD members also joined the SP MLAs in the well. Finally, the BJP also entered the well. They tore up copies of the bill and the agenda and threw paper missiles at the Speaker's podium.
However, the Opposition was in for a shock when the entire budget was taken up through a supplementary agenda. Originally, the budgets for the Urban Development, Animal Husbandry, Environment and Secondary Education Departments were to be presented and discussed. While the Opposition continued their protest, the budget was passed by voice vote.
