Haryana Assembly passes resolution condemning boycott of BJP, JJP leaders

The Haryana Legislative Assembly on Monday passed a resolution condemning the boycott of BJP and Jannayak Janata Party (JJP) leaders in different parts of Haryana by the locals.

Since November, when farmers intensified their protests against the Centre’s farm legislations and blocked Delhi’s borders, several BJP and JJP leaders in Haryana have been facing protests across the state. In several incidents, Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, deputy CM Dushyant Chautala and several other leaders of BJP and JJP have not been allowed entry by the people into their villages. Amid the apprehensions of a law-and-order disruption, the ruling alliance had to even alter their official functions on the occasion of Republic Day.

A visibly angry Manohar Lal Khattar on Monday raised the issue after the Question Hour concluded and demanded opposition leaders to condemn such incidents.

“Agar kahin par samaj ka koi varg, koi sangthan kisi bhi rajneetik party ke netaon ka boycott karne ki baat kahega, toh yeh sadan unki ninda karne ka prastaav karta hai (If any faction of society, any organisation talks about boycotting leaders of any political party, this House proposes to condemn it),” Khattar said. The resolution was read out by the Speaker and subsequently passed by the House by voice votes. The Congress, however, staged a walkout refusing to accept the resolution that was mooted without any prior notice.

Without naming anybody, Khattar said there were several people, including a few from the Congress who, were instigating people to do so. Calling it a “murder of democracy” and a “dangerous trend” that is against the principles of a democratic setup, Khattar demanded that the House should pass a resolution condemning all such incidents of “boycott of elected representatives”.

However, the opposition, led by Bhupinder Singh Hooda, refused to accept Khattar’s assertions. “I would like to clarify one thing on the floor of the House that nobody from my party is instigating anybody. This is your misconception. We had been supporting their [farmers] demands and we shall keep doing so,” he added.

Khattar raised this issue when BJP MLA from Ambala city, Aseem Goel, was informing the House about a recent protest outside his residence. Although Goel did not name any Congress office bearer or leader, he said there were people among the protesters who were using unparliamentary language. “They were using words that I cannot even utter. I have a family. They even said either I shall kill them or they would kill me,” Goel added.

Before Goel could complete, senior Congress leader and MLA from Beri, Raghuvir Singh Kadian, asked Speaker Gian Chand Gupta as to whether an MLA can raise a personal issue in the House. Hooda, too, raised objections and said that it was a law-and-order subject on which Goel could lodge a police complaint and take legal action.

It is then that Khattar stood up and raised the issue of repeated incidents of protests against BJP and JJP leaders in several parts of Haryana.