BJP veterans LK Advani, Shanta Kumar express ire over opposition stalling parliament

NEW DELHI: Miffed at the winter session of Parliament heading towards a near washout, BJP veterans LK Advani and Shanta Kumar have expressed their ire at the opposition for stalling proceedings of the two Houses and suggested that action be taken against members who are causing disruption and indulging in unruly behaviour.
Advani, who had openly vented his anger on Wednesday at the Lok Sabha not running smoothly and no discussions taking place, went to meet Speaker Sumitra Mahajan when the House was adjourned briefly on Thursday.He spent five minutes with her and discussed the frequent adjournments and Opposition’s attitude.
Shanta Kumar, another member of the BJP old guard, suggested to the speaker in a letter that she should cancel the daily pay and allowances of those members who troop into the Well of the House and raise slogans. In case a member still continues with this conduct, he should be suspended from the House for the remainder of the session, he said.
Sources said Advani sought to clarify to the Speaker that when he lost his cool on Wednesday, he was not finding fault with the way she was trying to run the House. He had also telephoned Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar and assured him that the government was not to be blamed for the deadlock, the sources added.
However, Advani did not appear very pleased with the Treasury Benches either. On Thursday, he sat alone for around 15 minutes in the Lok Sabha after the House was adjourned for the day. He had spoken out in anger to his party colleagues in the House lobby on Wednesday about Parliament not conducting any business, sources said.
Some BJP MPs claimed Advani feels the government is also not making enough efforts to ensure that Parliament functions smoothly.
Kumar wrote a letter to the Speaker on December 7. In the two-page letter, he said: “The whole scene is becoming extremely shameful. The dignity of democracy is being lowered … What ideals are we setting in front of the new generation? Unnecessarily, we are becoming a subject of ridicule.”