The Parliament House has turned into a fortress with MPs opposing the creation of Telangana threatening to suicide apart from staging angry protests as the bill to bifurcate Andhra Pradesh may be tabled in the Lok Sabha today.
The Telangana Bill will prove to be the litmus test for Congress today as the PM will hold talks with senior leaders on whether to table the contentious bill today.
The government has still not been able to decide on tabling the Telangana Bill in Parliament as Congress MPs from Andhra Pradesh have threatened to take drastic steps, including of committing suicide.
Congress sources said the bill could be taken up after the rail budget is passed and if the preparations, including printing of the bill which was earlier readied for the Rajya Sabha, are complete.
Drama over the AP Reorganization Bill are at a new level with no less than six ministers openly joining anti-Telangana protests in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday and MPs allegedly holding out suicide threats.
Peripheral security outside the Parliament House building has also been augmented. The CRPF and Delhi Police forces have been deployed in greater numbers to ensure no untoward incident happens within the premises of the Parliament area.
PM Singh yesterday met with Opposition leaders over lunch where he sought BJP leaders' support in getting Bills passed in Parliament, including that on Telangana.
BJP leaders made their support conditional to no harsh measures being employed against protesting MPs and a handsome compensation package being worked out for Seemandhra areas.
Read more: Fisticuffs, pepper spraying marks tabling of Telangana bill in Lok Sabha
Three Congress MLAs quit party over Telangana issue
Latest updates:
* 3.45pm: 17 others suspended from Lok Sabha for rest of the session under Rule 374 for creating ruckus.TDP MP K Narayana Rao suffered heart attack, treatment is underway and he is out of danger now, says ANI quoting TDP's Ramesh Rathod. It is a sad day, such unruly behaviour by an MP has put Indian democracy to shame. We have to take strong action, says Digvijay Singh. TDP member K Narayana Rao rushed to RML Hospital as he collapsed in Lok Sabha after apparently consuming something.
* 2.26pm: Seemandhara MP L Rajagopal suspended for using pepper spray inside Lok Sabha, say reports. Uproar continues in Parliament; Rajya Sabha adjourned till Monday, Lok Sabha till 3 pm.
* 1.32pm: What has happened has shamed us. It is a blot on democracy: Speaker Meira Kumar. The Speaker says she will consult leaders for initiating action against those involved in the fracas.
*1.14pm: CPI member Gurudas Dasgupta demands arrest of L Rajagopal.
* 1.02pm: Telangana bill has been introduced in Parliament and it is now the property of the House: Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde. Kamal Nath says action will be recommended to Lok Sabha Speaker on the issue. It is her prerogative to take action. Speaker Meira Kumar rushed home as she felt the effect of the pepper spray in her office connected to the House. Some MPs affected by the pepper spray rushed to hospital by ambulances. Smell of the spray even felt outside the House.
* 12.55pm: Union Minister Kapil Sibal and other officials confirm Telangana Bill has been tabled in the Lok Sabha. PTI says the impact of the spray was so severe that even mediapersons in the press gallery atop the Chair started coughing.
* 12.34pm: Rajya Sabha adjourned till 2pm after bedlam in House over Telangana and other issues.
* 12.15pm: Ruckus in Rajya Sabha as MPs from Seemandhara troop into the Well of the House, attempt to break Chairman's microphone. Suspended Congress MP L Rajagopal who was standing in the well of the house, took out a bottle of pepper spray and had sprayed it all around the house, leading to the adjournment of the house. Four MPs have been taken away in an ambulance for immediate medical attention following the pepper spray attack. It is not known why this has happened. Among the injured are the pepper spray wielder, L Rajagopal himself. TDP MP Venugopal brandishes knife in Parliament.
* 12.02pm: Telangana Bill introduced in Lok Sabha, adjourned soon after. Home minister Sushilkumar Shinde introduced the bill.
* 11.50am: High drama outside and inside the Parliament. Pro Telangana and United Andhra supporters clash as they protest outside. Heavy police personnel deployed.
* 11.40am: Four Congress MLAs from Seemandhara region resign from the Assembly and quit party in protest against the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh.
* 11.00am: Rajya Sabha adjourned until noon after Seemandhra MP's create an uproar over the Telangana issue.
* 11.00am: The Lok Sabha on the other hand, functioned for a full five minutes before being adjourned till 12.
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