LUCKNOW: The commencement of the budget session of the Uttar Pradesh legislature was replete with unruly scenes as Akhilesh Yadav-led Samajwadi Party lawmakers created a ruckus both inside and outside the house here on Monday.
As soon as Uttar Pradesh Governor Anandiben Patel stood up to deliver her joint address to both houses of the legislature, the SP MLAs rushed to the well of the house and started heckling the UP Governor by raising slogans --“Rajyapal Go Back” (Governor go back-- holding placards.
They continued their sloganeering during the entire joint address of the Governor on the opening day of the Budget Session.
However, the Governor completed her joint address and later the house was adjourned till Tuesday. Earlier, SP lawmakers staged a demonstration outside the House against the policies of the BJP government.
The SP members were holding posters and placards with slogans such as “bulldozers”, “sugar cane dues”, “unemployment” and “law and order” as they sat on a dharna at the main portico of the Vidhan Sabha building.
The protesting MLAs were seen being taken away in police vans. The protest began at Chaudhary Charan Singh's statue on the assembly premises amid a tussle with police personnel. As the protest intensified, the MLAs got into a scuffle with the cops.
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All media persons were forcibly removed from the dharna site by marshals. State Finance minister Suresh Khanna will table the Budget on February 22.
The Budget, this year, would be the second one to be presented in CM Yogi’s current term and his seventh overall.
Earlier, UP CM Yogi Adityanath appealed to all the members to give constructive contributions to house proceedings by participating in the debate and discussions amicably to strengthen democracy and to work for the benefit of the people of the state.
CM Yogi said elected representatives were the axis of a democratic set-up and must discuss issues of public welfare. He said the government was ready to discuss all the issues on the floor of the house. He appealed to all members to maintain discipline and decorum in the house.
“It is the job of government to have discussions on all issues related to the people and raised in the Assembly. The session will be run from February 20 to March 10, if needed we will have sittings and discussions on Saturdays as well. I appeal to the opposition to help us run the Assembly smoothly,” UP CM Yogi Adityanath had said.
On the other, the leader of the opposition in the Assembly, Akhilesh Yadav attacked the state government over the issues of caste census and law and order in the state. He said that since the CM was from another state, he was not concerned about the caste census in UP.
The SP chief said the demand for caste census was not new and even during the Congress regime at the Centre, the same demand was raised by a host of leaders from parties across the country.
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“In the absence of the caste census, people will not get their due in welfare schemes of the government,” claimed Akhilesh Yadav.
He slammed the state government over the law and order scenario saying it was in shambles.
“Recently, a woman and her daughter were burnt to death due to state government, administration and bulldozer. You are going around with bulldozers, expecting that investments will come. You are showing people dreams,” said Akhilesh Yadav while interacting with media persons after the house was adjourned. He accused the present government of looting and destroying the farmers.
“They didn't pay attention to farming, didn't set up a mandi for irrigation, fertilisers, pesticides. It's a liar's government that had promised Rs 1 lakh crore for the infrastructure of mandis but they did not make even a single mandi in UP,” said the SP chief.