Indian opposition leaders have accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government of attacking democracy after 78 MPs were suspended from parliament in one day.
The MPs were protesting against last week's security breach in parliament. Overall, 92 opposition lawmakers have been suspended from the two houses of parliament in the ongoing session.
Most of them have been barred for the rest of the winter session, which ends on Friday. Around two dozen of them may have to stay away for longer, depending on the decision of the parliament's privileges committee.
Monday's suspensions are expected to worsen already frosty relations between the opposition and Mr Modi's government.
Most of the suspended MPs are part of the INDIA alliance, a coalition of opposition parties that hopes to take on Mr Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party in next year's general election. The alliance is set to meet later on Tuesday.
Many opposition MPs had been demanding a statement in parliament from either federal Home Minister Amit Shah or Mr Modi on the security breach. Last Wednesday, two people entered parliament and set off coloured gas and shouted slogans, while two others protested outside parliament.
Six people have been arrested so far in the case, with police charging the four protesters under a stringent anti-terror law. Police have not officially disclosed a motive, but media reports and the families of the accused have said the protesters were unemployed and wanted to express their frustration with the government's policies.
The breach occurred on the 22nd anniversary of a deadly militant attack on the parliament. Opposition MPs have also asked for a discussion in parliament on the security lapse.
Though Mr Modi did not speak in parliament on the issue, he told a Hindi newspaper that “what happened is very serious”.
“There is no need to debate this, there should be a detailed investigation into this,” he told the Dainik Jagran newspaper.
Mr Shah has also not spoken in parliament, but said at an event that a high-level enquiry had been ordered into the incident and accused the opposition of politicising the security breach.
“PM can give an interview to a newspaper, home minister can give interviews to TV channels,” said Mallikarjun Kharge, president of the opposition Congress party. “But they have zero accountability left to parliament, which represents the people of India.” Mr Kharge, a member of the Rajya Sabha or upper house of parliament, has not been suspended yet.
Manoj Kumar Jha, an MP from the regional Rashtriya Janata Dal, called his suspension “a badge of honour”.
“It's a recognition that they are trying to suppress the questions we [opposition] are raising,” he told reporters.
Some opposition MPs including Mr Kharge have alleged that the government has deliberately suspended many opposition leaders to pass important bills without debate.
But federal minister Piyush Goyal, who on Monday moved a motion to suspend 34 MPs in the upper house, called the opposition's protest a “pre-planned strategy” to disrupt the functioning of parliament and block important bills.
He also accused opposition MPs of disrespecting the parliament and insulting the Lok Sabha speaker and Rajya Sabha chairman by refusing to heed their requests to not bring protests signs to the well of the house.
— CutC by bbc.com
