Eight Congress MLAs suspended from Rajasthan Assembly

Jaipur, March 3 (IANS) The Rajasthan assembly on Tuesday witnessed uproarious scenes on the issue of baton charge on Congress workers while they were protesting the new land acquisition bill, following which eight Congress MLAs were suspended.

Speaker Kailash Meghwal suspended nine opposition MLAs -- eight from the Congress and one independent MLA - for rest of the budget session of the assembly.

Earlier, Congress MLAs led by opposition leader Rameshwar Dudi raised the issue of the baton charge by police on Congress workers outside the state assembly.

He alleged that some of their party workers including MLA Ashok Chandana and state Congress president Sachin Pilot sustained injuries in the police action while they were trying to march towards the assembly.

Chandana also tried to show the injuries that he sustained due to police action.

The Congress MLAs then trooped near the speaker's podium and raised slogans against the state government and police.

The MLAs from the treasury benches moved a motion for suspending these opposition MLAs from the rest of the assembly session.

A total of nine MLAs were suspended and asked to leave the house. But they continued to raise slogans. Marshals had to be summoned by the speaker and they escorted the MLAs out of the house.

"Our MLAs are not going to attend the assembly session when it meets after holiday on March 9," Sachin Pilot, state president of the Congress, told IANS.

He said that on Wednesday (March 4) the Congress will hold protest rallies and marches against the electricity tariff hike at all district headquarters and submit memorandums to district collectors.

Former chief minister Ashok Gehlot criticised the Vasundhara Raje government for the police baton charge. "Home minister should hold an impartial investigation and take stern action against the police and administrative officials found guilty," he said.