Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh) [India], February 20 : A heated exchange between Madhya Pradesh minister Kailash Vijayvargiya and Leader of Opposition Umang Singhar was seen in the State Assembly during the budget session on Thursday, leading to disruptions and repeated adjournments of the House.
Amid the uproar from the opposition leaders, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav tendered an apology on behalf of Vijayvargiya in the House over the incident and requested to continue the proceedings.
The confrontation began when the leader of the Opposition, Singhar, made allegations against the government during the discussion. Responding to the charges, Kailash Vijayvargiya appeared to lose his temper, prompting Congress legislators to create an uproar in the House and demand an apology from the minister over his remarks.
Following this, the House was adjourned thrice to pacify the situation and allow proceedings to continue smoothly. After the situation was restored, Vijayvargiya stated that in his 37-year parliamentary career, it was the first time he had lost his temper in the Assembly.
Nonetheless, the Congress MLAs continued their demand, stating that the minister did not apologise for his behaviour and he should tender an apology.
In the meantime, CM Mohan Yadav stood up and apologised in the House over the incident. He said that maintaining the dignity of the assembly is the collective responsibility of all members and tendered his apologies if the incident had hurt anyone's feelings.
Later on, speaking to reporters, CM Yadav said, "If we exercise some restraint in our emotions, the House runs smoothly. Therefore, we hope that the leaders from both sides, be it the Leader of Opposition and the leader of the ruling party, who hold these responsible positions, should show a large heart, and I tried to make efforts to discharge this responsibility."
Additionally, CM Yadav added, "Today, while expressing gratitude on behalf of the ruling party at the Governor's address, I have shared my thoughts. Inside the Assembly, the ruling and opposition sides express their respective views, and that is also the pride of the Constitution. All our colleagues have put forth their respective points... Our democratic tradition has been to jointly ensure the smooth conduct of the House; we have made efforts to uphold that...We are satisfied that the opposition has listened to our points attentively... This budget is moving forward while encompassing the development accounts of Madhya Pradesh. This is the largest budget in the state's history so far... Allocating nearly one and a quarter lakh crore rupees for farmers, continuing all schemes, and not imposing even a single new tax is our way of working."
On the other hand, Leader of Opposition Umang Singhar stressed that CM Yadav is the leader of the House; he acknowledged the incident and apologised to the House, to all the legislators, for this matter and incident.
"It is natural that when there are many issues, such an agitated situation is created, but I believe that he (Kailash Vijayvargiya) is a senior minister who also has long experience. If he makes such statements, what message will go to the other legislators? I believe that he should have shown seriousness. But the Chief Minister has apologised to the House, to all the legislators, for this matter and incident. He is the leader of the House, and he has acknowledged it. There is no personal dispute with anyone, but every issue should be discussed. Umang Singhar does not speak in politics without evidence," Singhar told ANI.
Meanwhile, MP Minister Kailash Vijayvargiya said, "...This is their own unique style, they are the Leader of Opposition. We are in power, we are seated with responsibility, and therefore it is also our duty to uphold parliamentary decorum..."
Besides, when asked, he did not express an apology for the incident; the Minister gave a wide berth to the question and maintained silence.