Why Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla has refused to attend Parliament

Speaker Om Birla is refusing to preside over the Lok Sabha. YSRCP leader Midhun Reddy was in the chair when the Lok Sabha took up the Question Hour on Wednesday. The Lower House of Parliament was initially adjourned until 2 pm and then for the day as the Opposition continues to protest over Manipur. But why is this happening? And has this happened before? Let’s take a closer look: Parliament has been in an uproar since the beginning of the Monsoon Session. Sources have said Birla, who has witnessed the proceedings in the Lok Sabha, is upset with the repeated disruptions as well as the behaviour of the members of the House. Parliament officials said Birla was on Tuesday upset at the behaviour of both theOpposition and Treasury benches during the passage of bills in the Lok Sabha. The Speaker holds the dignity of the House in highest esteem and expects members to maintain decorum during the proceedings, officials said.

Birla will not chair the Lower House until members behave in a manner befitting the House’s dignity, a source added.

Officials have said Birla’s sentiments regarding the repeated disruptions since the beginning of the Monsoon Session have been conveyed to both the Opposition and treasury benches. Birla in May, addressing the inauguration of the new Parliament Building, urged fellow lawmakers to establish new standards of parliamentary discipline, decorum, and dignity in the new parliament building and become idols for democratic institutions across the world. “The newly built Parliament House is an amazing amalgam of our rich culture, ancient heritage and our modern aspirations,” Birla said. “It is in the Parliament, where members speak in one voice in national interest despite regional and ideological differences. This is the strength of our democracy. Parliament is the custodian of this proud democratic heritage,” he said. [caption id=“attachment_12916742” align=“alignnone” width=“640”] Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla in May called for lawmakerss to establish new standards of decorum, dignity and discipline. PTI[/caption] This isn’t the first time an upset Birla has stayed away from the Lok Sabha. As per NDTV, in March 2020, Birla, citing the behaviour of the members, did not chair the proceedings of the Lower House for two days. That came amid vociferous protests and sloganeering by the Opposition over the Delhi virus and the coronavirus. Sources said Birla was ‘anguished’ at the Lok Sabha members not following decorum and was ‘deeply hurt’. Biju Janata Dal leader B Mahtab, who sat in Birla’s chair, said the Speaker was ‘saddened’ and that he had very right to express his pain. Opposition MPs meet Murmu Meanwhile, a total of 31 members of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance, including the 21-member delegation of Opposition MPs which went to Manipur for a two-day visit, met President Murmu today. The Oposition submitted a memorandum over their demand for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s statement in Parliament on Manipur and to list steps needed to restore peace in the violence-hit state. They also demanded that the prime minister visit the strife-torn state and make an appeal to the warring communities to end violence and promote brotherhood. In the memorandum submitted to the President, 31 leaders of the opposition bloc also raised the issue of communal tension in Haryana’s Nuh and alleged that the Central government was not bothered about the developments that are taking place “barely 100 km from the Prime Minister’s Office”. The 21-member delegation visited Manipur, which has seen ethnic strife and violence since 4 May, on 28 and 29 July. On the first day of their two-day whirlwind tour, the Opposition MPs visited several relief camps in Imphal, Moirang in Bishnupur district and Churachandpur and met victims of ethnic clashes. On the concluding day of the visit, the delegation met Manipur Governor Anusuiya Uikey in Imphal and handed over a memorandum to her and requested her to restore peace and harmony by taking all effective measures, “where justice should be the cornerstone”. ‘Opposition not interested in debate’ The BJP on Wednesday accused opposition parties of running away from a debate on the Manipur issue in Parliament, asserting that they are not interested in a discussion as they know that the government has an appropriate response to their questions. “The government is ready for a debate and Home Minister Amit Shah who had visited Manipur is ready to reply. I can’t understand what is their problem. People too are unable to understand,” Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi told reporters. With inputs from agencies