Ruckus in Uttar Pradesh Assembly over Muzaffarnagar riots

The violence in Muzaffarnagar dominated the proceedings on the opening day of the monsoon session of the UP Assembly on Monday, with opposition members trooping into the well of the House, raising slogans and forcing an adjournment.

As soon as as the House met at 11 am, members of opposition parties, including BSP, Congress, BJP and Rashtriya Lok Dal stormed into the well displaying placards slamming the government over the Muzaffarnagar riots.

BSP members climbed on their seats and with paper caps and placards with slogans like "VHP-SP ke pehle dawat, kosi parikrama ke baad adawat (VHP-SP first feast and then show animosity after kosi parikrama).

"Apharan, firoti, balatkar SP ka dekho jungleraj," (Kidnapping, extortion and rape, this is jungleraj of SP government), a placard carried by a BSP member read.

While Congress members demanded resignation of the government, saying politics on corpses must be stopped, BJP legislators said "harassment" of panchayats should be stopped.

"Balatrakiyon ka sanrakshan band karo, panchayataon ka utpeedan band karo (stop patronising rapists, stop harassment of panchayats," a placard carried by a BJP member read.

Amidst slogan shouting by opposition members, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Mohd Azam Khan alleged that communal fire was being spread in a planned manner.

He alleged there was a conspiracy and BJP had a divisive mentality.

After Speaker Mata Prasad Pandey's repeated attempts to pacify legislators went in vain, he adjourned the House for 15 minutes and later for the entire question hour.

Similar scenes were witnessed in the Legislative Council, which was also adjourned due to opposition attack on the ruling SP over the violence.

Communal violence in Muzaffarnagar has claimed 47 lives and displaced over 40,000 people.