NEW DELHI: Rajya Sabha proceedings were adjourned till 2 pm on Wednesday amid noisy protests by the Opposition members who demanded the presence of Home Minister Amit Shah in the House.
As soon as the House reconvened at 12 noon, after getting adjourned soon after it met at 11 am, Chairperson C P Radhakrishnan advised members to not enter the well of the House and never try to show placards, failing which he would be forced to take action.
"My humble request to all the members (is that), you should cooperate with the Chair. Please never try to enter the well of the House and never try to show the placards. These two things you have to follow. If any member is not following these two instructions. I may not be hearing them. I will not be able to give them any chance and I will be forced to take action," he said, and took up the Question Hour.
However, the Opposition parties continued to raise slogans in support of their demand. Notwithstanding their sloganeering, the Chair went ahead with the proceedings.
As relentless protests by the Opposition MPs continued for over 15 minutes, the Chair adjourned the House till 2 pm.
When the House met for the first time at 11 am, papers were laid amid vociferous protests by the Opposition against the alleged Ayodhya Ram Temple donation theft, and seeking presence of the Home Minister in the House.
Continuing with the House business, the Chair called BJP MP from Jammu and Kashmir Sat Paul Sharma to speak.
"Today is a historic day not just for Jammu and Kashmir but for the whole country. On August 5, 2019, under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Article 370 was abolished and Jammu and Kashmir got a new identity," Sharma said amid sloganeering by the Opposition.
"Jammu and Kashmir was brought into the mainstream... what the Home Minister did for Jammu and Kashmir has taken the Union Territory to new heights," he said.
Sharma also slammed parties like NC, PDP and the Congress and alleged that they did not do anything for J&K.
The Chairman was meanwhile seen telling Opposition MPs to go back to their seats. He also read out rule 235, and warned that he would take action against the MPs. "I will take action against you... dont force me to do that."
AIADMK MP M Thambidurai meanwhile urged the government to consider changing the name of the Madras High Court to the High Court of Tamil Nadu, stating it is the aspiration of the state's people.
Madras stopped being the name of the state capital three decades ago, he said.
Sanjay Bhatia of BJP spoke on hydrogen train launched from Haryana.
Sangita Balwant of BJP spoke on the July 18 launch of India's first private orbital-class rocket, the Vikram-1, from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.
Amid continuing sloganeering, V Sivadasan of CPI(M) spoke about the need for protection of employment against arbitrary termination, and also mentioned gig workers. He also said some educational institutions have issued notices to students and teachers because they participated in student protests.
"Students conduct the struggle for the community, development of society. But their management has given notice to teachers..." Sivadasan said.
The Chairman, however, said he was deviating from the topic, and called the next speaker.
BJP MP Kavita Patidar then spoke on Ayushman Bharat while Medha Vishram Kulkarni of BJP spoke on the issue of same medicines having different prices, and urged the government to intervene to stop profiteering in medicines.
The House was later adjourned till 12 noon after Opposition MPs continued to raise slogans.