The ruling Congress and the opposition BJP held parallel protests on the third day of the Himachal Pradesh Assembly’s Winter Session at the Tapovan Vidhan Sabha complex in Dharamshala on Friday.
Members of both parties raised slogans against each other, creating a tense and charged atmosphere even before the House began its proceedings.
The Congress Legislature Party held a protest demanding the release of the Rs 1,500-crore special package announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to the state on September 9.
Congress MLAs said despite the state facing huge disaster-related losses, the Centre has still not released the promised amount even after more than two months. They accused the Union government of showing a "step-motherly" attitude towards Himachal Pradesh.
Meanwhile, BJP MLAs staged their own protest, accusing the Sukhu-led Congress government of being "anti-employee." The BJP legislators held placards and alleged that the government had "failed" to clear medical reimbursement bills, arrears, leave encashment, gratuity, DA, and pension payments.
Leader of the Opposition Jairam Thakur criticised the Congress government, saying that despite taking "record debt," it had not been able to provide financial benefits to employees and pensioners. He said the state would eventually receive the package announced by the prime minister.
The confrontation between the two parties outside the Assembly was also reflected inside the House. Sloganeering by the Opposition before the Question Hour forced the Speaker to adjourn the proceedings for ten minutes.
Taking note of both parties holding protests inside the Vidhan Sabha complex at the same time, Speaker Kuldeep Singh Pathania said that prior information must be given to the Vidhan Sabha Secretariat before staging any protest.
He added that the Secretariat would allot equal time to both parties for protests to avoid any tense situation.
Also Read: Employees, pensioners warn of intensified agitation
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