NEW DELHI: There was pandemonium in Rajya Sabha as soon as the Constitution 127th Amendment Bill, 2021, was passed around 6 pm.
Within minutes, the atmosphere got heated with opposition MPs in the well of the House, copies the General Insurance Business (Nationalisation) Amendment Bill torn, marshals called in large numbers and women MPs alleging manhandling by them.
The Centre moved the insurance bill while the Opposition demanded it be referred to a select committee.
While the bill was taken up, MPs continued to protest and copies of the bill were torn and papers hurled at Sasmit Patra, who was on the Chair presiding the House.
Some of the Opposition MPs tried to climb on table of the secretary general. Marshals were called to prevent agitating members from hampering passage of the bill.
Several women MPs said they were manhandled by ‘male marshals’. The bill was passed in 15 minutes. Several regional parties, who generally bail out the government in Rajya Sabha, also demanded it be referred to a select committee. TRS, YSR Congress said it needs consultation.
“In 55 years of parliamentary career, I never saw women MPs attacked. More than 40 men and women were brought into the House from outside. It is painful. It is an attack on democracy,” said NCP chief and MP Sharad Pawar after the Opposition staged a walkout.
Congress MPs Chhaya Verma and Phulo Devi Netam claimed they were pushed by the marshals.
“They surrounded us in large numbers and I even fell down as they manhandled us while we were opposing the bill,” said Netam.
Priyanka Chaturvedi, Shiv Sena MP, said the Rajya Sabha Chairman should take note of this.
“If what happened yesterday pained our Hon Chairman, then what happened today with Opposition women MPs should pain him more. I urge him to take cognisance of the jostling and manhandling of MPs for protesting against privatisation of the general insurance business,” she tweeted.
Congress chief whip Jairam Ramesh said that the Insurance Amendment Bill to privatise insurance companies was passed in the house with a large force of security personnel present.
“What happened was worse than atrocious,” he said.
The Centre blamed the Opposition for creating ruckus during the session. The upper House passed three more bills in a hurry before it was adjourned sine die.
Hitting back, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi alleged on Wednesday that Opposition members manhandled marshals amid ruckus in the Rajya Sabha.
Joshi termed "totally false" the opposition's allegations that marshals manhandled their MPs and said one can check facts from CCTV footage.
"The opposition is spreading lies. Marshals can't dare to touch MPs, they can't even think about it. CCTV footage will establish that they are lying," he told reporters outside the Parliament building.
Joshi said the government demands that the Rajya Sabha chairman constitute a special committee to probe the misbehaviour and indiscipline by opposition members, and strict action should be taken against them.
He said he has never seen such behaviour by MPs in his parliamentary career.
Leader of the House and Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal alleged that an MP tried to "strangulate" a lady security officer.
The Rajya Sabha chamber witnessed ugly scenes of opposition members jostling with marshals as they tore papers, entered the Well of the house and attempted to go near the presiding officer's chair.
After a peaceful debate and the smooth passage of a bill to restore the states' powers to identify and notify their own lists of OBCs, all hell broke loose when the insurance amendment bill to privatise the state-run general insurance companies was taken up.
Calling it a sell-off, the opposition MPs stormed into the Well of the House shouting anti-government slogans.
They were, however, prevented from going anywhere near the table of the House or the chair by a wall of about 50 security staff that sort of cordoned off what Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu referred to as the "sanctum sanctorum".
A cross-gender staff deployment -- female officers where male MPs were protesting and male officers where female MPs were protesting -- was made.
But this did not deter the MPs belonging to a cross-section of opposition parties -- from the Congress to the Left to the TMC and to the DMK.
They tore papers, believed to be copies of the bill, and lofted those towards the chair and the House officers.
Some tried to break the cordon and jostled with the security staff.
During the melee, the House passed the insurance bill by a voice vote, with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman not even replying to the limited debate that could take place.
The ruckus forced two adjournments and later, when two separate bills on homeopathy and the Indian system of medicine were taken up, the opposition MPs staged a walkout.
During the ruckus, the MPs carried placards and shouted slogans.
Dola Sen of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) held a string tied around the neck of a fellow MP, who had a placard hung around her neck saying "Democracy Killed".
Ripun Bora of the Congress made unsuccessful attempts to climb over the marshals to reach the chair.
Some of the MPs whistled and a few others stood up on their seats.
(With PTI Inputs)