Day Two: AIADMK stalls both Houses over Karti issue

Participating in a special discussion on the issue, T J Venkatesh (AIADMK) also repeatedly referred to the role of two former DMK Union Ministers and a former Finance Minister in the UPA-II by name in the money laundering issue, but Speaker Sumitra Mahajan disallowed it. 

Venkatesh regretted that Prime Minister Narendra Modi came to power on the promise of unearthing black money, but his government was doing precious little to bring to book those behind the money laundering charges. Amid loud protests from Congress and Left members, the debate was taken up with Speaker Sumitra Mahajan saying she had got a notice of BJD leader Bhartruhari Mahtab for a discussion on the matter and she was allowing it. 

Congress and Left members were protesting against the immediate taking up of discussion on the money laundering charges when the Motion of Thanks for the President for his address was still being debated by the House. 

Congress members were heard protesting the “match-fixing” between a section of the opposition and the government. Congress and Left members later staged a walkout when Venkatesh started speaking after Mahtab initiated the debate. Mahtab claimed that no FIR has been made in the case and the ED has not filed chargesheet so far, despite the fact that the money laundering trail in the deal has allegedly spread to 14 countries, including British Virgin Islands. 

Mahtab, who was interrupted sometimes even by TMC’s Saugata Roy, wondered whether the BJP and Congress were “doing a match fixing” by ensuring no action in the deal allegedly involving some of the powerful people in the UPAII. Speaker earlier allowed the discussion by overruling the points of order raised by Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge and TMC’s Saugata Roy. 

Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu made a strong pitch for such a debate noting that there were umpteen number of discussions on the Ayodhya issue and those related to Gujarat earlier despite the matters being sub-judice. Earlier, AIADMK MPs created ruckus in Lok Sabha for the second day today demanding action against former Union Minister P Chidambaram’s son Karti on the alleged money laundering charges, Speaker Sumitra Mahajan allowed them to raise the matter later in the day. 

Similarly, the Rajya Sabha also witnessed noisy scenes and was adjourned twice during the Zero Hour as AIADMK members continued to disrupt proceedings to press their demand for a CBI probe into the money laundering row involving former Finance Minister P Chidambaram’s son Karthi. Deputy Chairman P J Kurien tried to pacify them. 

He said, “You can give a proper notice and the same would be examined by honourable Chairman as per rules of the House. If Chairman allows discussion, he has no objection.” Referring to uproarious behaviour of AIADMK members, Leader of the Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad said the protest was government-sponsored.