Chandigarh, Dec 23: The Haryana Vidhan Sabha on Monday witnessed repeated adjournments, sloganeering and walkouts as a debate on electoral reforms and preparation of electoral rolls descended into chaos, with Congress legislators disrupting proceedings and questioning the Assembly’s jurisdiction over the issue.
The motion, moved by BJP MLAs Ram Kumar Kashyap and Yoginder Rana, was admitted by Speaker Harvinder Kalyan. However, as Kashyap rose to initiate the discussion, Congress members raised slogans, forcing the Speaker to adjourn the House for 15 minutes.
When proceedings resumed, some Congress MLAs — including Kuldeep Vats, Induraj Narwal, Balram Dangi, Vikas Saharan and Jassi Petwar, who had earlier been expelled for unruly behaviour — again disrupted the House, making it difficult for proceedings to continue.
The Congress staged multiple walkouts, arguing that electoral reforms fall under the Union List and are beyond the competence of the state Assembly. The party also accused Industries Minister Vipul Goel of making objectionable remarks against its legislators. Goel denied making any unparliamentary comments and said he regretted it if anyone felt hurt.
Amid the disruptions, the House passed a resolution condemning the Congress for what it termed unruly conduct and for refusing to participate in a discussion on an issue of public importance.
Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini accused the Congress of deliberately spreading confusion by levelling allegations of “vote chori” (vote theft) and said a debate was necessary to place facts before the people. Describing the Election Commission as a constitutional body, Saini said casting aspersions on such an institution was “almost sacrilegious”.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Mahipal Dhanda alleged that the Congress was avoiding debate after making serious allegations. “When the government wants to answer them, they walk out of the House,” he said.
Speaker Kalyan asserted that the motion had been admitted as per rules and could not be challenged. He clarified that discussions in the Assembly are meant to give clarity to the public on issues of concern.
Meanwhile, Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) MLA Arjun Chautala criticised the Congress for repeatedly resorting to walkouts, saying the role of the opposition was to seek answers from the government, not abandon debate. He alleged that the Congress would never support electoral reforms and linked the party to past vote theft allegations, adding that opposition unity does not mean unquestioned alignment.
