BJP on Wednesday termed the Opposition’s uproar over the suspension of Question Hour in the upcoming Lok Sabha session “master class in hypocrisy.”
“It is amusing to see Opposition MPs who don’t have the power to question even their party president create a fake narrative on this issue,” said BJP Rajya Sabha MP and party media cell head Anil Baluni.
Opposition hits out at move to suspend Question Hour for monsoon session
He added that Parliament will be convening only for 4 hours daily due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, leading to the cancelling of Question Hour, but unstarred questions would be allowed.
“Far-fetched”
“It is far-fetched and too dramatic to say that this is being done by the government to evade questions. This is simply a case of extraordinary measures for extraordinary times. The government has always answered each question with sincerity,” he said.
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“State assemblies have functioned in various States after March 2020 and there has been no Question Hour in the assemblies of Andhra Pradesh, Kerala, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra. BJP is in Opposition in most of these States and it did not raise a hue and cry there,” he said.
“Parliamentary Affairs Minister and Defence Minister spoke to parties where they all supported this move. But now suddenly they have changed their stand,” he said.
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Even in normal times, he said, it was important to note that Question Hour was routinely disrupted by the Opposition. “The extent of disturbance is visible from the fact that in the last 8 sessions, out of the 162 hours allotted for Question Hour, only 59 hours were used and more than 102 hours were lost due to disruptions and adjournment,” he said.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi had earlier said that an abbreviated Zero Hour of 30 minutes would be allowed for members to take up particular issues of interest.
