Owaisi Among 10 Opposition MPs Suspended From Waqf Bill Panel After Protests

New Delhi: Ten Opposition members of the Parliamentary panel on the Waqf Amendment Bill were suspended on Friday after they protested against chairman Jagdambika Pal for allegedly rushing through the proceedings.

The members who were suspended for one day are — Kalyan Banerjee (Trinamool Congress), Mohammad Jawed (Congress), A Raja (DMK), Asaduddin Owaisi (AIMIM), Naseer Hussain (Congress), Mohibullah (Samajwadi Party), Mohamed Abdulla (DMK), Arvind Sawant (Shiv Sena UBT), Nadimul Haque (TMC) and Imran Masood (Congress).

Friday’s meeting of the 31-member Parliamentary committee got began a stormy note, with Opposition members claiming that they were not being given adequate time to study the proposed changes to the draft legislation.

Owaisi & Co. said the BJP-dominated panel was pushing for quick acceptance of the report on the Waqf Amendment Bill with an eye on the February 5 Delhi Assembly election.

Heated arguments ensued, leading to a brief adjournment of proceedings.

A delegation led by Mirwaiz Umar Farooq, religious head of Kashmir, appeared before the committee after it reconvened.

Trinamool’s Kalyan Banerjee and Congress party’s Naseer Hussain stormed out of the meeting and told reporters that proceedings of the committee had become a “farce”.

“We repeatedly requested the meeting to be held on January 30 and 31, but our requests were ignored. When we landed in Delhi last night, the subject of the meeting was changed. Initially, we were informed that the meeting would proceed clause by clause. What is happening inside feels like an undeclared emergency. They are rushing through things because of the Delhi elections — it is politically motivated. The chairman doesn’t listen to anyone; it feels like ‘jamindari’. They show no respect for opposition members. This JPC has become a farce,” Banerjee said.

BJP’s Nishikant Dubey then moved a motion to suspend the members, which was passed by the committee.

Dubey slammed the Opposition for creating an uproar and acting against parliamentary democracy.

BJP MP Aparajita Sarangi termed the Opposition’s behaviour “disgusting”, saying they were continuously creating chaos and using unparliamentary language against the panel chief.

“Opposition leaders led by Kalyan Banerjee used very unparliamentary language against the JPC chairperson Jagdambika Pal, a very senior leader. We condemn this. We want the meeting to be held but at the same time, JPC cannot continue till eternity. The entire discussion has to come to an end,” she said.