Suspension of 12 MPs was to protect democracy: RS Chairman

New Delhi [India], November 30 : Rajya Sabha Chairman Venkaiah Naidu on Tuesday asserted that the suspension of 12 Members of the House for the remainder of the ongoing Winter Session was "in order" and to protect democracy.
Nadu also mentioned that it was the decision of the House and not of the Chair.
The Rajya Sabha Chairman explained various related aspects while responding to the procedural objections to the suspension raised by the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Upper House Mallikarjun Kharge.
Stating that the Rajya Sabha is a continuing institution, Naidu observed that taking action against some Members on the first day of the current Winter Session for their acts of misconduct on the last day of the Monsoon Session was "in order".
Accordingly, Naidu said, "It is not correct to describe the suspension as anti-democratic".
Naidu stressed that the Chair and the House are empowered to take appropriate action against the acts of indiscipline by Members in the House under the Rules of Procedure of the House.
Naidu noted that Deputy Chairman Harivansh made repeated appeals on the penultimate day of the last Monsoon Session for order in the House and even took names of some Members on the last day for their unruly conduct in the House.
He referred to the bulletin issued by the Secretariat on the proceedings of the House on August 11 in which names of 33 Members were mentioned for their misconduct in the HouseThe Chairman recalled his own observations in the House on August 11 out of deep anguish during when he described the acts of misconduct and unruly behaviour on the previous day as outright acts of 'sacrilege of the House'.
Naidu expressed concerns over the repetition of unruly conduct on the last day of the Monsoon session.
He referred to the "errant members not reflecting on their misconduct during the last session and the suspended Members talking to news channels after yesterday's suspension without conveying any remorse.
"The Members who have committed this sacrilege against the House have not expressed any remorse. On the other hand, they are justifying it. So, I don't think the appeal of LOP (Leader of Opposition Kharge for revocation of suspension) is worth considering."
Stating that about 93 per cent of the Members of Rajya Sabha are keen on the smooth functioning of the House, Naidu noted that violent acts of the minority in the House are denying the majority of their right of participation in the proceedings of the House.
Mentioning that he was not happy over the suspension of any members anytime, Naidu stressed that as the Chairman of the House, it was his duty to ensure the proper functioning of the House.
"I am not here to defend the Government. I am here to see that the Members do not offend the Parliament and the people.....It is wrong to say that it (the suspension) is anti-democratic. Action has been taken to protect democracy," Naidu said.
Noting that the Members of the House can either talk out or walk out as it was their right, Naidu urged the Members not to make any comments when some Members walk out of the House.
Naidu's statement came before the opposition parties including Congress, DMK, RJD, Left, and AAP staged a walkout from the Rajya Sabha after their demand to revoke the suspension of 12 MPs was rejected by the Chairman.
Soon after the House assembled for the day, Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge reads a submission requesting Rajya Sabha Chairman Venkaiah Naidu to revoke the suspension of 12 MPs from the House for the entire winter session.
In his submission, Kharge said: "I request you to revoke the suspension of 12 members of the House."
In a move that angered the Opposition and set the stage for acrimonious exchanges, a dozen members of Opposition parties in Rajya Sabha were suspended from the winter session on the very first day on Monday following a motion brought in by the government.
The members were suspended for alleged unruly conduct towards the end of the monsoon session in August when marshals were called after Opposition members stormed the Well of the House during the passage of the General Insurance Business (Nationalisation) Amendment Bill, 2021.
The suspended members comprise six from the Congress, two each from Trinamool Congress and Shiv Sena, and one each from CPI and CPM: Phulo Devi Netam, Chhaya Verma, Ripun Bora, Rajamani Patel, Syed Nasir Hussain and Akhilesh Prasad Singh of Congress; Dola Sen, Shanta Chhetri of Trinamool Congress; Priyanka Chaturvedi, Anil Desai of Shiv Sena; Elamaram Kareem of CPM; and, Binoy Viswam of CPI.