Jaipur: The week-long deadlock in the Rajasthan Assembly ended on Thursday after Chief Minister Bhajanlal Sharma intervened, and the protesting Congress MLAs joined the proceedings.
The ruling BJP and the opposition Congress were at loggerheads over the budget statement. Earlier in the day, Congress lawmakers met on the lawn of the MLA quarters outside the Assembly to deliberate their approach. It had announced that the protest outside the House would continue.
The stalemate was triggered by the suspension of six Congress MLAs, including state party chief Govind Singh Dotasra. Senior Congress leader and former Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot had urged both the ruling and opposition benches to cooperate to restore parliamentary debate.
“There should be no place for arrogance on either side. Such impasses have occurred before and have been resolved. However, the BJP is targeting Govind Singh Dotasra, aiming to tarnish Congress’s image,” Gehlot alleged.
Leader of Opposition Tikaram Jully had also accused the BJP of deliberately stalling Assembly proceedings to avoid addressing public concerns. He claimed that ministers were unable to answer opposition queries, leading the BJP to engineer disruptions. “The opposition wants the House to function, but the ruling party’s rigidity is preventing progress,” Jully had said.
Meanwhile, security was tightened inside and outside the Assembly premises. Marshals were deployed inside, while police personnel, both in uniform and plainclothes, were stationed outside. Authorities had also halted traffic near the western gate of the Assembly as a precautionary measure.
Six Congress MLAs—Govind Singh Dotasra, Ramkesh Meena, Ameen Kagzi, Zakir Hussain Gesawat, Hakam Ali Khan, and Sanjay Kumar were barred from the House for the entire budget session on 21 February. The opposition had termed the move “undemocratic” and an attack on legislative values.
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