Bhubaneswar: Preventing elected MLAs from entering the Odisha Assembly premises without the Speaker’s directive is a starkly undemocratic move, the Congress party alleged. This unprecedented action marks a first in the history of the Odisha Assembly, where police have assumed the role of policymakers, while the Speaker appears to be controlled by the ruling party
In a scathing attack on the BJP government’s double standards on violence against women in the state, Pradesh Congress Chief Bhakta Charan Das expressed concern over the rising incidents of rape, gang rape, and brutal atrocities during the Mohan government’s tenure.
Das while addressing media today ,attended by senior leaders of the Odisha Pradesh Congress, including former Leader of the Legislative Party Narasingha Mishra, former PCC Presidents Jayadev Jena and Prasad Harichandan, former Union Minister Srikant Jena, former MPs Ramachandra Khuntia, Anant Prasad Sethi, and Amar Pradhan, former Ministers Panchanan Kanungo and Sharat Raut, former MLAs Santosh Singh Saluja and Samir Rautray, and All India Mahila Congress Secretary Sasmita Behera, the PCC President strongly criticized the BJP government’s double standards on violence against women.
At a press meet, former Leader of the Legislative Party Narasingha Mishra said for the first time in the history of the Odisha Assembly, the police, without the Speaker’s directive, evicted the elected representatives from entering the Odisha Assembly premises.
He alleged that last night, as a former MLA, he wanted to enter the Assembly to discuss matters with Congress MLAs who were holding a sit-in-dharna, which falls within his rights as a former legislator, but the police did not allow him.
Though, he personally tried to contact the Speaker over the phone, the Speaker neither picked up nor responded to his calls, Mishra stated.
He alleged that security personnel misbehaved with the MLAs who were staging a sit-in dharna inside the Assembly premises, and Congress Legislative Party Leader Ramachandra Kadam was injured in the incident.
“Despite Section 163 being in force for security reasons, there was no legal restriction on five former MLAs entering the Assembly, but the police forcibly removed five former MLAs and senior Congress leaders present there, dropped them into vehicles. The BJP is destroying the dignity of democracy and blatantly murdering it in broad daylight, which the Pradesh Congress will strongly oppose”, Mishra said.
Former Union Minister Srikant Jena stated that in Odisha and several other BJP-ruled states, women’s commissions have been rendered defunct. After the Home Department’s report was made public today, it was revealed that eight rape incidents occur daily in Odisha, which is extremely unfortunate.
Jena added, “Previously, seven rape cases were reported daily, but since the BJP government came to power, instead of decreasing, the number has increased. While the rising brutal atrocities and rape incidents against women in Odisha have become a social malaise, the ruling party’s lack of political will has failed to curb it. For this reason, he urged all Odias across the state to support the planned Vidhan Sabha gherao on March 27.”
Former PCC President Jayadev Jena expressed that while Odisha’s Speaker is a woman, “Ignoring the Congress MLAs’ demand for the Chief Minister’s statement and the formation of a House Committee on violence against women, and suspending 12 MLAs, is tantamount to murdering democracy.
He said, last night, 12 Congress MLAs staged a sit-in-dharna inside the Assembly premises, yet the police prevented former MLAs from meeting them is highly condemnable, adding the BJP government, just as the entire ‘Kaurava’ side was wiped out from the earth for disrespecting women, it will also be completely uprooted due to the brutal atrocities against women in Odisha.
Expressing concern over the rising cases of crime against women in the state,former PCC President Prasad Harichandan said, under the current BJP government, democratic values in Odisha are being murdered every day.
He recalled that in 1995, during the Congress government, the opposition had staged an overnight sit-in inside the Assembly premises, but the Speaker at that time did not suspend any MLAs. There are many such examples in our parliamentary democracy. He also mentioned that in 2012, when the ruling party suddenly decided to close the Assembly, their party had convened a symbolic Assembly, which had made headlines in all media at the time.
