Congress members stage walkout, hold Dharna at assembly entrance
The lathi-charge on the protestors demanding Nandprayag- Ghat road broadening and price rise rocked the second day of Uttarakhand assembly on the second day of budget session here at Bharadisain in the summer capital Gairsain on Tuesday. The agitating members of opposition Congress staged a walkout on both these issues on the day. Raising the issue of lathi-charge on the protestors at Bharadisain under rule 58, senior Congress leader Pritam Singh said that the residents of Ghat block of Chamoli district have been on the path of agitation on demand of broadening of the Nandprayag- Ghat road for three months. He said that on January 10, the locals made a 19 kilometre long human chain and started a hunger strike but their demand fell on deaf ears. Singh said that the brutal use of force by police on the protestors which included women is most unfortunate and reminded one of the British rule. He alleged that male police personnel used force on women during the lathi-charge on Monday and said that the Bharadisain lathi- charge has defamed Uttarakhand. Demanding resignation from the Trivendra Singh Rawat government on use of brutal force on protestors, the leader of opposition, Indira Hridayesh said that in the videos a police officer is seen beating a woman.
In his response the parliamentary affairs minister, Madan Kaushik said that initially the protest was peaceful but later some elements entered the ranks of protesters and became violent. He said that the CM has already made an announcement for broadening the road. He said that cases were registered on 40 protesters and 250 unidentified people during the protest. The minister also claimed that the protesters threw glass bottles on the police. This infuriated the Congress members who demanded an apology from the government as they marched to the well of the house. They later staged a walk out on the issue and sat on a Dharna at the entrance of the Vidhan Sabha. The Congress leaders said that the lathi-charge on protesters which included women reminds one of the Muzaffarnagar incident when the police used force on statehood activists.
Earlier in the day the Congress members tried to raise the issue of price rise under rule 310. The speaker later heard the issue under rule 58. In the debate the Congress members Indira Hridayesh, Pritam Singh, Karan Mahra, Adesh Singh Chauhan and Mamta Rakesh blamed the government for price rise and increase in prices of diesel and petrol. In his reply the parliamentary affairs minister said that the VAT on petrol and diesel in Uttarakhand is less than in many states in the country. He also gave a comparative account of prices of petrol and diesel in Uttarakhand with that of Congress ruled states. Not satisfied with the response of the minister, the Congress members staged a walk out.
Wednesday, 03 March 2021 | PNS | Bharadisain
