New Delhi: Angry over imposition of President’s Rule in Uttarakhand and Arunachal Pradesh, Congress today created ruckus in Parliament, accusing the Modi dispensation of toppling democratically-elected governments of opposition parties, a charge rejected by Home Minister Rajnath Singh.

The issue generated heat in both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha on the opening day of the session with Congress members in both Houses storming the Well and party chief Sonia Gandhi joining them in raising slogans.

In the Lok Sabha, Leader of Congress Mallikarjun Kharge and his party colleagues staged a dharna in the Well as their notice for adjournment motion on the issue was rejected by the Chair.

“It is a murder of democracy,” Kharge said as the Lower House assembled for the day, telling Speaker Sumitra Mahajan that he has given a notice for an adjournment motion on the issue. Members of JD(U) and AAP were also in the Well along with Congress.

AAP leader Bhagwant Mann was repeatedly seen pleading with the Chair to allow Kharge to have his say.

Amid a noisy protest by the treasury benches, Kharge said the Union government is purchasing MLAs, pressurising MLAs to install BJP government “by killing Costitution.”
The Speaker reminded Kharge that the matter is before the Supreme Court and hence he should not say anything further.

Kharge said he is referring to the action of the central government and not the ruling of Uttarakhand High Court which had revoked the President’s Rule. The Supreme Court later stayed the High Court’s order till April 27.

He said the BJP-government at the Centre celebrates the Constitution Day and birthday of key architect of the document B R Ambedkar, while it has “destabilised” democratically- elected governments in Arunachal Pradesh and Uttarakhand.

“There appears to be a great hurry by the NDA to grab power in every state… don’t forget there is Constitution… you could have waited for the March 28 floor test but you imposed President’s Rule on March 27,” he said.

He said the House had recently discussed the Ishrat Jahan alleged fake encounter case which is also sub-judice.

BJD’s B Mahtab said his party has also given notice on the issue. “The matter is in the court. We will wait for the verdict. We are confident that the court will deliver justice. But we are against arbitrary use of Article 356,” he said.

The Home Minister said the “crisis” in Uttarakhand and Arunachal Pradesh has not been created by NDA or BJP.

“It is an internal crisis of their party,” he said and welcomed Speaker’s decision that the issue cannot be raised in the present format as it is under consideration of the apex court.

In the Rajya Sabha, Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad raised the issue accusing the central government of “deliberately provoking” the opposition and “inducing” disruption so that the House does not run.

Azad said for the last one year, it has been seen that efforts are being made by the ruling party to create a situation that the House does not function.

The senior Congress leader said he had never seen that a government “does things during the session or just days before the session so that Parliament does not function”.

He said during winter session, the duly-elected Arunachal Pradesh government was “brought down” and the Centre did not stop till it installed its own government there.
Azad said President’s rule has been imposed in the past also, but never in such a “crude” way.

When he said he wanted to congratulate the judges of the Uttarakhand High Court for “having the guts to fight the Government of India”, Deputy Chairman P J Kurien said there should be “no commentary” on the judicial issues.

As Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi objected to the raising of the Uttrakhand issue saying the matter was sub-judice, Azad said the Centre “which disrespects the court, cannot be trusted”.

“Discussion will take place,” he asserted, as several Congress members carrying placards stood in the aisle.

Sitaram Yechury (CPI-M) countered Naqvi saying Leader of the House Arun Jaitley had said in the last session that discussion on issues, even if sub-judice, cannot be prevented in the House. “Apply your own precedents,” he said.

Anand Sharma (Cong) said the Centre used proclamation of President’s rule to disturb an elected government. “We will discuss it. We will expose you,” he said.
Right then, Jaitley asked Congress members to debate the issue when the proclamation comes up for discussion.

“It will come up for discussion before the House. This will House will have an oppourtunity to discuss it. Therefore, when the proclamation comes up, please disucss it.

“But today, you cannot by an alternative motion anticipate a discussion which is to take place when the proclamation comes up. You cannot discuss it at the pre-proclamation stage,” Jaitley said.

However, Congress members did not relent and several of them trooped into the Well. They raised slogans like ‘Modi teri taanashahi nahi chalegi’ (Modi, your authoritarianism will not work) and ‘Loktantra ki hatya bandh karo’ (stop murdering democracy). Deputy Chairman P J Kurien then adjourned the House till noon.

When it reassembled, Congress members again raised slogans from the aisle. The House was adjourned by Chairman Hamid Ansari till 2 pm within a few minutes.

(PTI)

New Delhi: The Supreme Court today stayed till April 27 the judgement of the Uttarakhand High Court quashing the imposition of President’s rule, giving a new turn to the continuing political drama in the state by restoring the Central rule there.

Before passing a brief order, a bench comprising Justices Dipak Misra and Shiva Kirti Singh recorded an undertaking given by Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi that the “Union of India shall not revoke the Presidential proclamation till the next date of hearing”.

The apex court clarified that it was keeping in abeyance the judgement of the High Court till the next date of hearing on April 27 as a measure of balance for both the parties as the copy of the verdict was not made available to the parties.

While listing the matter for hearing on April 27, the bench said that the High Court shall provide the judgement passed yesterday to the parties by April 26 and on the same date the copy of the verdict shall also be placed before the apex court.

The Supreme Court’s stay has the effect of undoing the revival of the Congress government led by Harish Rawat by the High Court judgement yesterday.

During the hearing, the bench also observed that as a matter of propriety the High Court should have signed the verdict so that it would be appropriate for it to go into the appeal.

The apex court issued notice to Harish Rawat and Chief Seceretary of the state on the petition by Centre challenging the quashing of Presidential proclamation under Article 356 of the Constitution in the state.

Appearing for the Centre, Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi, along with senior advocate Harish Salve, pressed for the stay of the HC judgement.

He said how one party can be put at advantage and assume the office of Chief Minister when the other party is pushed to disadvantage in the absence of the judgement.

Senior advocates Abhishek Manu Singhvi and Kapil Sibal, appearing for Rawat and the Assembly Speaker, argued hard against the passing of any interim order saying “you are allowing the appeal by giving the stay”.

Sibal was of the view that allowing stay of operation of the High Court verdict would be like enforcing the proclamation of the President rule.

During the jam-packed hearing, the bench sought to pacify both the parties saying that it has to take a balanced view as this is a Constitutional court.

“We will take on record the copy of the judgement and go through it. This matter may go to Constitution bench,” the bench said.

(PTI)