Proceedings in the Lok Sabha were adjourned until 2 pm on Thursday after Opposition members raised slogans demanding a discussion on the ongoing West Asia conflict and the shortage of LPG cylinders in several parts of the country.
Earlier in the day, the House had been adjourned until 12 noon shortly after it convened amid disruptions.
Om Birla, the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, was presiding over the session, a day after the House rejected a resolution moved by some Opposition members seeking his removal from the post.
As the proceedings began, Opposition MPs stood up from their seats and started protesting, raising slogans and demanding an immediate discussion on the issues of urgent public importance.
Birla repeatedly appealed to the members to maintain order and allow the Question Hour to continue smoothly.
Emphasising the significance of Question Hour as an essential parliamentary mechanism for holding the government accountable, the Speaker informed the House that he would present his views regarding the resolution seeking his removal at 12 noon instead of addressing it immediately at the start of the session.
However, the continued protests and sloganeering by Opposition members made it impossible to conduct business. Birla adjourned the proceedings until noon.
When the House reassembled at 12 pm, Speaker Birla addressed no-confidence motion against himself. However, disruptions continued, forcing the Speaker to adjourn the Lok Sabha again until 2 pm.
Congress seeks debate on West Asia situation
Meanwhile, Congress on Thursday accused the government of refusing to allow a discussion in Parliament on the situation in West Asia and its impact on India.
The party said the Opposition has been demanding a debate in both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, but the government is resisting the demand.
In a post on X, Congress general secretary in-charge of communications Jairam Ramesh said, "The Opposition is demanding a discussion in both Houses of Parliament on the situation in West Asia and its impacts on India. But the Modi Govt is adamantly refusing to allow such a debate. It is clearly afraid."
"Its foreign policy already stands brutally exposed," he added.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge had earlier said the energy crisis in the country is worsening, causing hardship to people.
"The Modi Government's fake 'source-based' assurances expose its utter incompetence. The Union Government was prescient about the impending war in West Asia. Yet it did nothing to secure India's energy supply," he said in a post on X on Wednesday.
The Congress had on Monday staged a walkout in the Rajya Sabha and protested in the Lok Sabha after expressing dissatisfaction with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar’s statement on the West Asia situation.
The party described the statement as "vapid" and alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s foreign policy "(mis)adventurism", along with the government’s undermining of the Indian Foreign Service, is pushing India into "vassalage".
Meanwhile, India on Monday called for de-escalation of tensions in West Asia and emphasised dialogue and diplomacy to resolve the conflict.
In his suo motu statement in Parliament, Jaishankar said New Delhi supports maintaining the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all states in the region.
He also defended the decision to allow an Iranian ship to dock at an Indian port, saying it was taken on humanitarian grounds.
Jaishankar said that the government has been closely monitoring the evolving situation and has already evacuated around 67,000 Indians stranded in the conflict zone.
He reiterated that the safety of Indian nationals, along with India’s energy security and trade interests, remains the government’s top priority.