BHOPAL: Income tax raids on two powerful businessmen triggered a stormy start to the monsoon session of the Vidhan Sabha with the opposition stalling the proceedings, demanding a debate on their alleged close links with ruling BJP leaders in Madhya Pradesh.
Amid noisy scenes, the house had to be adjourned twice, once for half-an-hour and later for the day, as opposition Congress members trooped in to the well of the house, raising slogans to press for a debate on their notices for adjournment motion saying that the recent income tax raids on builder-contractor Dilip Suryavanshi and teacher-turned mining baron Sudhir Sharma had brought to focus the issue of rampant
corruption in the state.
Raising the issue of I-T raids on businessmen close to BJP, Arif Aqueel (Congress) sought that the notice for adjournment motion be taken up for debate but the ruling party members opposed it saying that any action by a central agency cannot be discussed in the house.
Joining the issue, leader of the opposition Ajay Singh said Congress legislators had raised the issue of illegal mining through the no-confidence motion—debated in the house during winter session last year. "Then, the BJP government kept mum. Now, there is an I-T raid on the same people and the government will have to explain", he said and demanded a debate on the issue of corruption.
As the opposition and treasury benches argued in favour and against taking up the matter of I-T raids for debate in the house, legislative affairs minister Narottam Mishra quoted provisions to argue that I-T raids was in fact a quasi-judicial procedure which cannot become a subject matter for debate in the house. The minister's remark that the centre was misusing its agencies sparked noisy protests from the opposition members.
Intervening in the arguments, chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said "The government is committed to fight corruption and corrupt will not be spared at any cost".
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