Din in Rajya Sabha over Kerala killings

New Delhi: Members of ruling BJP and Opposition CPI(M) on Thursday clashed in Lok Sabha over the political violence in Kerala which has claimed many lives.

The issue was raised during the Zero Hour in the Lower House by CPI(M) leader P. Karunakaran, who took strong exception to some BJP leaders calling Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan and party general secretary Sitaram Yechury “terrorists” on Wednesday.

Mr Karunakaran said that according to rules, the BJP MPs cannot name or attack those who are not present in the House and are not in a position to defend themselves. Following this, the House witnessed noisy scenes and the senior leader could not be heard further due to the din, forcing the Speaker to adjourn the House briefly.

The BJP members indulged in heated exchanges as other CPI(M) members also vociferously protested the remarks made by two BJP members’ remarks during the Zero Hour on Wednesday.

After the adjournment when the House met again, Speaker Sumitra Mahajan did not allow Mr Karunakaran to raise the issue again.

Then members of the Left parties trooped into the Well of the House with Mohammad Salim (CPI-M) after which the Speaker allowed Mr Karunakaran to speak again.

He said that the Kerala chief minister has been holding meetings with members of the RSS, the Left and other stake holders to end violence. He added that many Left workers have been also been killed over the years.

Mr Yechury was also attacked, he said.

As BJP members protested again, the Speaker said the BJP members should not turn the House into a “Kurukshetra” but “Dharmakshetra” where they could debate issues.