Opposition parties, including the Congress and the TMC, staged a walkout from the Rajya Sabha on Monday after their request for a discussion on the Election Commission’s alleged lapses in issuing multiple duplicate voter ID cards and delimitation was denied.
MPs from the Trinamool Congress, Congress, and Left parties had submitted notices under Rule 267, which allows the suspension of scheduled business to discuss urgent matters. However, Deputy Chairman Harivansh rejected the notices, stating they did not conform to the chair’s rulings on such submissions.
While TMC and Congress MPs sought a debate on the alleged issuance of duplicate voter ID cards, Tamil parties raised concerns about the potential impact of the upcoming delimitation exercise on southern states. Opposition members protested, chanting slogans and demanding a discussion, but walked out after Harivansh reiterated that their notices had not been accepted and their statements would not be recorded.
A total of 10 MPs had submitted notices under Rule 267. Among them, TMC’s Sukhendu Sekhar Roy, Mausam B Noo, and Sushmita Dev, along with Congress’s Pramod Tiwari, called for a discussion on the Election Commission’s alleged lapses in issuing duplicate Electronic Electoral Photo Identity Cards across states.
DMK’s P. Wilson and CPM’s V. Sivadasan sought a debate on the implications of the upcoming delimitation process on southern states. Meanwhile, BJP’s Samik Bhattacharya raised concerns over rising atrocities against SCs, STs, and OBCs in West Bengal. CPI’s P. Santhosh Kumar sought to discuss the impact of Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio’s deal with Elon Musk’s Starlink for satellite broadband services in India.
Additionally, AAP’s Sanjay Singh called for a debate on rising crime and the deteriorating law-and-order situation in Delhi, while IUML’s Haris Beeran highlighted concerns over increasing drug addiction among youth and students in Kerala.
