BJP MPs Demand FIR Against TMC’s Kalyan Banerjee for Violence in Waqf Bill Meeting

GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 23rd Oct. Three BJP MPs have formally requested Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to file a First Information Report (FIR) against Trinamool Congress (TMC) member Kalyan Banerjee and suspend him from the House pending an investigation into what they termed “unprecedented violence” during a meeting of the joint parliamentary panel on the Waqf bill.

In their letter, signed by Nishikant Dubey, Aparajita Sarangi, and Abhijit Gangopadhyay, the MPs called for an investigation by the Lok Sabha Ethics Committee to consider rescinding Banerjee’s membership. The call for action follows an incident on Tuesday where Banerjee allegedly smashed a glass bottle and threw it towards the panel’s chairperson, Jagdambika Pal, during a heated exchange.

The BJP members described the event as an “act of goondaism and unpardonable violence,” asserting that Banerjee’s behavior went beyond acceptable conduct for a Member of Parliament. “The goondaism exhibited by Kalyan Banerjee has surpassed all limits of civilized behavior, constituting a life-threatening attack on the Chairperson,” they stated.

The MPs urged for immediate police custody and interrogation of Banerjee, highlighting the need for stringent measures to maintain the integrity of parliamentary proceedings. They emphasized that merely suspending him for a day was insufficient to deter such behavior.

Banerjee, who sustained injuries to his fingers during the incident, had already been suspended for one day from the parliamentary committee on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill. However, the BJP MPs argue that further punitive action is necessary to prevent a recurrence of such “hooliganism” in the future.

In response, opposition leaders criticized Pal for allegedly breaching procedural rules by publicly discussing the incident. Pal defended his actions, clarifying that he spoke about an “incident of violence” rather than disclosing committee proceedings. Opposition members, including DMK’s A. Raja and AAP’s Sanjay Singh, expressed concern over the management of committee meetings and the potential impact on justice.

The controversy surrounding this incident continues to unfold as both sides maintain their positions in the wake of the heated exchange.