President Pratibha Patil's address to the joint session of Parliament on Monday was disrupted briefly on five different occasions, with the MPs suddenly raising issues such as atrocities against Tamils in Sri Lanka, the demand for a separate Telangana and a sub-quota for the minorities.
But the President did not react much except by pausing in her speech for a few seconds. On the Lankan issue, she merely said: “My government also initiated steps for resettlement and rehabilitation of the internally displaced persons in Sri Lanka.”
The MPs, particularly those from Tamil Nadu cutting across party lines, raised the issue seeking India's support for the resolution by the United States, France and Norway to be moved against Lanka in the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) for “human rights violations.”
While Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam's Floor Leader in the Rajya Sabha Tiruchi Siva raised the issue before the beginning of her address, All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam leader in the Rajya Sabha V. Maitreyan and Communist Party of India Rajya Sabha member D. Raja raised the same issue during the fag-end of seeking an international investigation into the war crimes allegations against Lanka in UNHRC.
DMK Parliamentary Party leader T.R. Baalu told journalists later that the DMK was very particular that the Centre should support the resolution against the island nation and the party would not settle for anything less than a full support of the resolution.
‘It would be betrayal'
Mr. Raja said it would be betrayal of Sri Lankan Tamils and their interests if India took any decision to bail out Colombo in the UNHRC.
The Telangana issue too was taken up by the MPs, particularly those from the Telangana region of Andhra Pradesh with Peddpalli Congress member G. Vivekanand shouting “Jai Telangana” during the President's address.
Joined by some of his party colleagues-MPs from the region, he wanted immediate implementation of the earlier assurances of the President in her addresses to Parliament on forming the separate Telangana State.
The disruptions continued for some time even as she appealed to the Members of Parliament to work together “in a spirit of constructive cooperation” to discharge business in this session.
Quota within quota
Again when she made a reference to the government's recent decision to provide 4.5 per cent sub-quota within the OBC quota for minorities, Hukmadev Narayan Yadav (BJP) protested that the rights of OBCs would be affected.
When the President listed out the measures taken to increase fertilizer production, Jehanabad Jagdish Sharma (Janata Dal-United) alleged that farmers were not getting fertilizers.
