Bengal LoP Suvendu Adhikari to Boycott Budget Session Amid Protests
Click to start listening
Synopsis
Despite the end of his suspension, Bengal's Leader of Opposition, Suvendu Adhikari, will boycott the remaining Budget Session as a protest against the suspension of a fellow BJP legislator. He criticizes the government's accountability and the Speaker's bias towards their motions.
Key Takeaways
- Suvendu Adhikari announces boycott of remaining Budget Session.
- Protest against the suspension of Deepank Barman.
- Accusations of bias against the Assembly Speaker.
- Repeated suspensions of BJP legislators.
- Call for accountability from the Chief Minister.
Kolkata, March 18 (NationPress) Even though his one-month suspension from the West Bengal Assembly concludes on Tuesday, the Leader of Opposition, Suvendu Adhikari, has declared he will not participate in the remaining days of the session.
Adhikari stated he will forgo the concluding days of the second phase of the Assembly's Budget Session, which is set to continue until March 20, as a form of protest.
This protest is in response to the suspension of his BJP colleague, Deepank Barman, representing the Falakata Assembly constituency in Alipurduar district, for the entire duration of the second phase of the Budget Session, as announced by Speaker Biman Bandopadhyay on March 10.
To recap, LoP Adhikari, along with three other BJP members—Agnimitra Paul, Biswanath Karak, and Bankim Ghosh—were suspended from Assembly proceedings for a month on February 17, coinciding with the first phase of the Budget Session.
Officially, that one-month suspension period concluded on Monday, allowing the four BJP legislators to attend the proceedings on Tuesday, the fifth day of the current Budget Session.
However, on March 10, the Speaker instructed the Marshals to escort two BJP legislators, Shankar Ghosh and Manoj Kumar Oraon, out of the House and also sanctioned Barman's suspension.
In light of this, Suvendu Adhikari has chosen to abstain from the remaining days of the Budget Session.
Speaking to the press outside the Assembly, Adhikari asserted that Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and her administration do not uphold their accountability to the Assembly.
“Our legislators face repeated suspensions from the House. Therefore, unable to voice our concerns within, we must communicate with the public through you outside,” Adhikari remarked.
He further accused the Speaker of partiality, stating, “Whenever our legislators attempt to introduce adjournment motions within the House for discussions on significant issues, those motions are consistently rejected.”
