New Delhi [India], August 12 : As the opposition stages walkout holding the government responsible for repeated adjournments, Communist Party of India (Marxist) or CPI (M) MP P Sandosh Kumar on Tuesday reiterated the demands of the opposition parties to discuss the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in Bihar ahead of the upcoming assembly elections.
"No chance of getting it discussed means what? What kind of democracy is this? Are these 300 MPs silly people? We have our own credentials. The whole world is watching us. Why is the government afraid of a discussion? We had no option but to walkout," Kumar told ANI.
The CPI (M) MP further stated that the government was not ready for a discussion even after repeated requests.
"If Parliament is not the forum to discuss all these issues, where can we discuss?" Kumar asked, adding that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the centre can also take part in the debate on the Bihar SIR issue, which he said would "affect the electoral system of the country."
"Even after the repeated requests, the government is not ready for a discussion. At whatever time, whatever the language may be - we need a discussion on this issue. We were ready to discuss Pahalgam, and we cooperated; all of us participated. Now, another serious issue has arisen, and it is going to affect the electoral system of the country. We only demanded a discussion, nothing more. BJP can also take part in that discussion. It will not be one-sided," Kumar said.
Meanwhile, Samajwadi Party (SP) MP Iqra Hasan said that the taking away of constitutional rights of people amounts to "murder of democracy".
"If the constitutional rights of people are taken away and they are manipulated, this is the murder of democracy. They (BJP) want to ensure their victory through SIR," Hasan told ANI.
This comes after opposition members staged a walkout over their demand for a discussion on SIR.
In his address to the upper house, Congress chief and Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge this afternoon raised the issue of much-objectioned SIR drive in Bihar.
The chairperson of the upper house expunged his remarks after an appeal from JP Nadda, leader of the House in Rajya Sabha.
The opposition parties have been demanding a discussion on the Bihar voter list revision while raising objections to its implications for the common voters.
Owing to these demands, the Parliament has witnessed constant adjournments, with the government blaming the opposition MPs for disrupting the proceedings. However, the opposition claims otherwise, holding the government responsible for not allowing debates on matters of public importance, such as the SIR drive.