New Delhi/Lucknow, Oct 23 (PTI) Jagdambika Pal, who heads the parliamentary panel on Waqf bill, on Wednesday rejected the opposition’s allegations that he violated norms by going public about TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee smashing a glass bottle and hurling it at the chair during a meeting of the panel.
He also asserted he was ready to resign if opposition members say he did not allow them to speak at the meeting.
“I have not revealed any proceedings or deliberations of the committee. I have only made a statement about an incident of violence during the committee meeting by a member and his subsequent suspension,” Pal, a BJP MP from Uttar Pradesh, told PTI.
DMK member A Raja and AAP member Sanjay Singh had alleged that Pal violated rules of procedure for conduct of Parliamentary Committee meetings, which are conducted in-camera.
“I have always adhered to rules of parliamentary procedure and upheld the dignity of the House,” Pal said.
He said as the chairman of the Joint Committee on Waqf (Amendment) Bill, he made a statement on the incident of violence during the meeting of the panel on Tuesday involving Banerjee and the subsequent action against him.
The panel’s meeting hit the headlines after Banerjee smashed a glass bottle and threw it allegedly towards the Chair following a heated argument with BJP member Abhijit Gangopadhyay. Banerjee ended up cutting his own fingers and was administered first aid.
The panel decided to suspend the Trinamool member for one day from the committee proceedings.
Later in the day on Wednesday, talking to PTI Videos, Pal said, “In the JPC there was Sanjay Singh (AAP), Imran Masood (Congress), Mohibulla Nadvi (SP). You can ask them, whenever they or Kalyan Banerjee wanted to speak, were they not allowed? If they say they were not allowed to speak, I will resign.” Asked if there was any conspiracy, he said, “Whether it is a conspiracy or not, I feel that the kind of violent incident that happened is the height of anarchy. How did it come to mind that being an MP, he can break a bottle and throw it towards the chairman?” Pal said he has already informed the Lok Sabha Speaker about the incident.
“Our senior MP Nishikant Dubey ji has moved a resolution to suspend Banerjee for next meeting on Oct 28,” he added.
Apparently upset over the incident, Pal said it is not a question of an MP’s security but raises a question mark on protection of parliamentary system and traditions in future.
“In democracy there can be disagreement between opposition and ruling parties on issues. Whenever the ruling party passes a bill, opposition votes against it. We have seen tearing of papers, throwing of paper balls in parliamentary history but it was for the first time that a glass bottle was smashed and thrown towards the Chair. The MP himself got injured. There were opposition MPs present there. I was lucky that it did not hit my face or eyes and I had a narrow escape,” Pal said.
He said that he did not know why the TMC MP lost his temper despite the fact that he gave him ample chance to speak.
“We have done over 16 meetings and heard over 150 delegations including All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB), Jamait Ulema-e-Hind and others. We have reached all the states of the south. No JPC had gone into that much detail to prepare its report,” Pal claimed.
He also claimed that even those present in the meeting said it was “unexpected” and “cannot be accepted”.
Pal condemned the conduct of Banerjee, a rather vocal parliamentarian who has been strident in his criticism of the bill, saying such actions were “unprecedented” and crossed all limits.
Sources said Banerjee expressed regret for smashing the bottle and claimed that he never meant to throw it towards Pal, while still accusing him of “biased” behaviour.
The committee on Tuesday was hearing the views of two Odisha-based organisations, Justice in Reality and Panchasakha Bani Prachar, both of which included retired judges and lawyers, when opposition members questioned their stake in the bill. Both bodies were supportive of the amendments and offered more suggestions.
The Waqf (Amendment) Bill was referred to the joint panel of the Houses soon after being introduced in the Lok Sabha in the Monsoon Session.
The bill to amend the law governing Waqf boards has proposed far-reaching changes in the present act, including ensuring the representation of Muslim women and non-Muslims in such bodies.
It also aims at renaming the Waqf Act, 1995, as the Unified Waqf Management, Empowerment, Efficiency and Development Act, 1995. PTI SKU JK ABN ZMN
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.