New Delhi: The Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha witnessed repeated disruptions and adjournments since 13 December 2023, when a major security lapse occurred in the Parliament premises. A group of protesters managed to enter the Parliament building and raised slogans against the government’s policies. They were later detained by the security personnel and taken away. The opposition parties blamed the government for failing to ensure the safety and sanctity of the Parliament and demanded a statement from the Home Minister on the incident.
On Friday, 15 December 2023, the Lok Sabha Speaker suspended 13 MPs for the entire session for creating a ruckus and obstructing the proceedings of the House. The suspended MPs belonged to the Congress, the Trinamool Congress, the DMK, the RJD, and the IUML. One MP from the Shiv Sena was also suspended from the Rajya Sabha for the same reason.
On Monday, 18 December 2023, the Lok Sabha resumed its session after a two-day break, but the opposition parties continued to protest and demand the Home Minister’s statement. The Speaker repeatedly urged the MPs to maintain order and allow the House to function, but his appeals went unheeded. He then announced the suspension of 33 more MPs for the entire session for their unruly behavior. The suspended MPs included prominent leaders like A Raja, Kalyan Banerjee, and Adhir Ranjan Choudhary from the Congress, the Trinamool Congress, and the DMK respectively. With this, the total number of MPs suspended for the entire session in the Lok Sabha reached 46.
The opposition parties condemned the Speaker’s action and accused him of being biased and undemocratic. They said that the suspension of MPs was a violation of their parliamentary rights and an attempt to suppress their voice. They also reiterated their demand for the Home Minister’s statement and said that they would not allow the House to function until he comes and explains the security lapse.
The ruling party defended the Speaker’s decision and said that it was necessary to restore the dignity and decorum of the House. They said that the opposition parties were disrupting the House without any valid reason and wasting the precious time of the Parliament. They also said that the security lapse was a matter of investigation and the Home Minister would make a statement at an appropriate time.
List of suspended MPs
Here is the complete list of the 46 MPs who have been suspended from the Lok Sabha for the entire session:
- Kalyan Banerjee (Trinamool Congress)
- A Raja (DMK)
- Dayanidhi Maran (DMK)
- Aparup Podar (Trinamool Congress)
- Prasun Banerjee (Trinamool Congress)
- ET Mohammed Bashir (IUML)
- G Selvalm Annadurai (DMK)
- T Sumathi (DMK)
- Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury (Congress)
- K Navaskami (DMK)
- K Raviraswamy (DMK)
- Prem Chandran (RSP)
- Shatabdi Roy (Trinamool Congress)
- Saugata Roy (Trinamool Congress)
- Asith Kumar (Trinamool Congress)
- Kaushalendra Kumar (JD-U)
- Anto Antony (Congress)
- Palli Manickam (DMK)
- Pratibha Mandal (Trinamool Congress)
- Kakoli Ghosh (Trinamool Congress)
- Sunil Mandal (Trinamool Congress)
- K Murali Dharan (Congress)
- Amar Lion (Congress)
- Manish Tewari (Congress)
- Ravneet Singh Bittu (Congress)
- Jasbir Singh Gill (Congress)
- Gurjeet Singh Aujla (Congress)
- Manickam Tagore (Congress)
- Gaurav Gogoi (Congress)
- Saptagiri Sankar Ulaka (Congress)
- Benny Behanan (Congress)
- Hibi Eden (Congress)
- Dean Kuriakose (Congress)
- Ramya Haridas (Congress)
- TN Prathapan (Congress)
- Kodikunnil Suresh (Congress)
- MK Raghavan (Congress)
- Abdul Khaleque (Congress)
- Pradyut Bordoloi (Congress)
- Vincent Pala (Congress)
- Gaurav Gogoi (Congress)
- Mohammad Jawed (Congress)
- Ranjeet Ranjan (Congress)
- K Jayakumar (RJD)
- Anupriya Patel (Apna Dal)
- Arvind Sawant (Shiv Sena) (suspended from Rajya Sabha)
