Uproar In Odisha Assembly Over Missing Words In Constitution’s Preamble; Business Stalled On Day-1

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Assembly was stalled on the opening day of the winter session on Tuesday with opposition members creating ruckus over missing words in the preamble of the Constitution displayed in the building.

Members of opposition Biju Janata Dal (BJD) created uproar over deletion of ‘secular’ and ‘socialist’ words from the preamble of the Indian Constitution displayed in the Assembly complex on the occasion of the Constitution Day.

As senior BJD MLA and former Minister Ranendra Pratap Swain raised the issue, other opposition members also strongly protested deletion of the key words from the Constitution’s preamble.

Spearheading the protest, Swain said the deletions was an ‘affront to the Constitution. The eight-time Athagarh MLA said pointed out that the Supreme Court on Monday rejected PILs seeking deletion of ‘secular’ and ‘socialist’ words from the Constitution’s preamble.

It is unfortunate that the same words are missing in the Constitution displayed in the Assembly, he said.

Congress legislators also joined the protest terming the development as unfortunate.
Amid uproarious scenes and ruckus by opposition members, it became to conduct business and the House was adjourned till 4 pm.

Earlier, the session began on a stormy note as the House was initially adjourned till 12.25 pm amid pandemonium by opposition members over the mango kernel death issue.

Soon after the question hour commenced, opposition members were on their feet staging protest over a number of issues and the performance of the government.

While Swain raised questions over the Constitution, Congress legislators trooped into the well of the House attacking the government over the deaths of three tribal women allegedly after consumption of mango kernel gruel in Kandhamal.

They held Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi responsible for the tragedy and demanded his resignation. This led to a heated exchange between the ruling BJP and opposition members.

While Speaker Surama Padhy said that the issue can be discussed after the question hour, uproar by opposition members continued. As uproarious scenes prevailed, the Speaker found it difficult to conduct business and adjourned the House till 12.25 pm.

Earlier, Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi moved obituary motion and expressed deep sorrow over the deaths of former members of the Assembly recently. Leader of Opposition Naveen Patnaik also conveyed his condolences, along with Congress Legislature Party Leader Ramachandra Kadam and CPI (M) MLA Laxman Munda, who mourned the loss of the former members. In a show of respect, members observed one-minute silence for the departed souls.

Notably, the Winter Session of the Assembly is scheduled to run till December 31. The Chief Minister, who also holds the Finance portfolio, is scheduled to present a Supplementary Budget for the current year, 2024-25, in the House on Tuesday.