NEW DELHI: Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Friday said in Lok Sabha that the government was ready for a discussion on the Manipur violence amidst vociferous protests by opposition parties which disrupted the proceedings of the House for the second consecutive day.
As soon as the House met, the members of the opposition parties were on their feet.
The members, including those from the Congress, DMK and Left, raised slogans and told Speaker Om Birla that "Manipur is bleeding".
The speaker told opposition members that sloganeering will not bring any solution to the problem but only dialogues and discussions can.
"You don't want the House to function, you don't want the Question Hour should take place. All other members want the House to run. This is not good. The solution can be found only through discussions," he said.
As the opposition did not heed his requests, Birla asked the Defence Minister to speak.
Singh, who is also the deputy leader of the House, said the government is ready for a discussion on Manipur incidents.
He said the Manipur situation should be taken seriously and the seriousness of the government was reflected when the prime Minister himself said that the entire country was feeling ashamed over the Manipur incidents.
Singh said: "We want that there should be discussions on Manipur incidents. I have said this in an all-party meeting and I want to reiterate here that there should be discussions on Manipur incidents".
"But I can see that the opposition is unnecessarily creating problems so that no discussions take place on the Manipur situation. I want to say that the opposition is not serious about a discussion on Manipur as it should have been. We want a discussion on the Manipur situation and there should be a discussion. The opposition should take it seriously," he said.
As the opposition did not relent, the speaker adjourned the proceedings till 12 noon.
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"A solution can be found only through discussions but you just don't want any discussion," Birla said.
When the House assembled again at 12 noon, opposition members trooped to the well raising slogans demanding a reply from the prime minister.
They also raised slogans demanding the presence of the prime minister in Lok Sabha.
As Rajendra Agrawal, who was in the Chair, asked members to return to their seats, the sloganeering continued.
Members also displayed placards as part of their protests.
"This is an important and sensitive issue. This should be discussed in the House," Agrawal said.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Prahlad Joshi said the government is ready for a discussion.
"The entire country is concerned about the Manipur situation. we are equally concerned," Joshi said.
As the protest continued Agarwal adjourned the proceedings for the day.
The Manipur violence rocked proceedings in both Houses of Parliament on the first day of the Monsoon session on Thursday, with the opposition demanding a statement from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and a discussion on the situation in the northeastern state.
The session started a day after a video of two women being paraded naked by a mob on May 4 in a Manipur village went viral, triggering a nationwide outrage.
The Manipur Police on Thursday arrested four accused who were seen in the video, officials said.
Police said a case of abduction, gang rape and murder has been registered at Nongpok Sekmai police station in Thoubal district against unknown armed miscreants.
