The Lok Sabha was adjourned for the day on Monday following uproar over several issues including the multi-crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud, demand for special status to Andhra Pradesh and demand for increasing quota beyond 50 percent in Telangana.

After the house met at 12 p.m., following its earlier adjournment, opposition members from several parties including the Congress, Trinamool Congress, Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) were on their feet raising different issues.

Several members, including those from TDP and TRS, were displaying placards.

The papers were laid on the table of the House amid din. Speaker Sumitra Mahajan announced that she had accepted resignation of Nationalist Democratic Progressive Party leader Neiphiu Rio as a member of the House with effect from February 22.

As the sloganeering continued, Mahajan adjourned the house for the day.

Earlier when the House met in the morning for its first sitting of the second half of budget session, similar protests were witnessed.

Trinamool Congress and Left raised slogans in protest against the alleged bank fraud amounting to over Rs 12,600 crore by jewellery designer Nirav Modi and his uncle Mehul Choksi who have fled the country.

TDP MPs protested seeking special category status to Andhra Pradesh.

Rajya Sabha adjourned for the day

The Rajya Sabha was adjourned for the day on Monday amid ruckus by the opposition over frauds in the public sector banks (PSBs), in the backdrop of the latest Rs 12,600 crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) scam involving diamontaire Nirav Modi.

As the upper House was reconvened at 2 p.m. after two earlier adjournments, the opposition MPs were on their feet and many of them trooped to the space near the Chair's podium, shouting slogans "Nirav Modi ko wapas lao (Bring Nirav Modi back)".

Nirav Modi of the Gitanjali Gems was photographed with Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the World Economic Forum at Davos in Switzerland in January. The businessman, however, fled India just few days before the PNB scam came to light.

The government has denied that Nirav Modi was part of the official delegation that went with the Prime Minister to Davos.

Deputy Chairman P.J. Kurien asked the agitating members to return to their seats but they kept shouting slogans.

On the other side of the podium, Telugu Desam Party (TDP) MPs also resumed their protest over alleged "injustice" to Andhra Pradesh in Telangana's comparison and demanded special financial package from the Centre for their state that was bifurcated into Andhra and Telangana in 2014.

Kurien said that he was ready to allow a short duration discussion on the PSB frauds and asked Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad to start the discussion. However, Azad said over the din that discussion could be resumed only if the other parties agreed to it.

"Prime Minister Modi had promised to bring back black money. The black money hasn't come but the white money has certainly flown out of the country," Azad said.

Amid the din, Kurien adjourned the House for the day.

Earlier in the morning as soon as the House met for the day, opposition MPs protested against the multi-crore PNB scam.

AChairman M. Venkaiah Naidu first adjourned the House for 10 minutes, but as soon as it reconvened at 11.20 a.m., the scene was no different.

Naidu asked the agitating members to return to their seats, saying all the matters raised by them would be discussed under appropriate rules. However, the MPs refused to relent.

He then adjourned the House till 2 pm.


A host of opposition leaders including Congress Ghulam Nabi Azad, Samajwadi Party's Naresh Agarwal and Trinamool Congress' Sukhendu Shekhar Roy had given notice to discuss the PNB scam under Rule 267 by suspending all the listed business for the day.

From the BJP side, Vinay Sahasrabuddhe had given 267 notice to discuss about relatives of former Union Ministers found indulged in scams.

The Chair rejected both sides' notices and asked them to raise the issues under other relevant rules.