Bihar assembly adjourned till lunch break over ruckus created by opposition

PATNA: The Bihar legislative assembly was today adjourned till lunch break,within minutes of start of proceedings, as opposition MLAs created ruckus demanding compensation to farmers over maize crop failure and alleged role of two Union ministers hailing from BJP in sparking communal tension.

Proceedings of the House began with the swearing-in of BJP's Rinky Rani Pandey, who recently got elected from Bhabhua assembly seat in the bypoll.

However, as soon as the Question Hour began,opposition members, notably from the RJD and the CPI(ML) were on their feet raising slogans against the Nitish Kumar government over not providing compensation to farmers over failure of maize crops which has caused distress to farmers.

CPI(ML) legislators also waved maize plants in front of the Speaker Vijay Kumar Choudhary, who requested the MLAs not to enter the well and take their seats.

Sudama Kumar of the ultra-left party alleged that a farmer in Sheohar district of the state had committed suicide a few days ago on account of maize crop failure.

RJD members, led by Bhai Virendra, backed the CPI(ML) over the issue of agrarian distress, and also raised the matter of alleged communal polarization by BJP leaders and Union ministers Giriraj Singh and Ashwini Kumar Choubey.

Singh has been drawing flak over controversial remarks in the wake of the victory of the RJD in Araria Lok Sabha seat bypoll and over linking the killing of the father of a BJP worker in Darbhanga to a dispute over naming of a square after Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The Darbhanga police has, however, asserted that the killing was the result of a land dispute, a view echoed by Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi.

Choubey's son Arijit has been named in an FIR lodged at Bhagalpur where a communal clash had erupted on Saturday, leaving three persons including two policemen injured.

The minister's son has been booked for taking out a religious procession, with loud music, without prior permission from the district administration.

A group of BJP MLAs also rose from their seats, saying 'pro-Pakistan chants will not be tolerated' in reference to a video that went viral on the social media last week wherein a group of youths were shown raising slogans supporting Pakistan in the vicinity of the house of Sarfaraz Alam, who won the Araria by-poll.

With no signs of a let-up in the din, the Speaker adjourned the proceedings till 2 pm.