In a historic first, Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar expressed deep disappointment on Friday, June 28, over Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge’s unprecedented act of entering the Well of the House during an Opposition protest. The Upper House experienced three adjournments due to the disruptions caused by protestors and their slogans.
The turmoil began in the morning session when the Chairman announced his decision to reject 22 notices from Opposition leaders, which called for suspending the day’s business to discuss alleged NEET irregularities. This sparked outrage among the Opposition MPs, leading to their entry into the Well of the House and subsequent adjournment of proceedings.
BJP leader Sudhanshu Trivedi’s speech on a motion to thank the President for her address was repeatedly interrupted by the protest. Kharge, at one point, joined the protesters in the Well of the House, a move Chairman Dhankhar labeled as unprecedented and a “stain” on parliamentary history.
“I am pained and surprised that Indian parliamentary tradition will stoop to such low that the Leader of the Opposition will troop into the Well,” Dhankhar stated, before adjourning the session until 2 PM. He later condemned the incident again, describing the conduct as ignoble and damaging to the institution’s reputation.
Despite the disruptions, the House resumed discussions on the motion of thanks before adjourning for the day at 6 PM. Rajya Sabha will reconvene at 11 AM on Monday.
Kharge defended his actions, claiming he was forced to step into the Well because the Chairman ignored his repeated requests to speak. “I raised my hand for a long time, but the Chairman’s focus was on the treasury benches,” Kharge told reporters. He emphasized that the Opposition aimed to address the NEET issue, which affects thousands of students, and did not intend to disrupt the Motion of Thanks debate.