March 17, 2011 2:30 PM

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Lok Sabha adjourned till 6 pm and Rajya Sabha till 3pm

As the Lok Sabha met after 2.00 pm, the scene was not different and the House has to be adjourned till 6.00 PM. Similarly, the Rajya Sabha was also adjourned till 3.00 pm, after laying down of the important papers. Earlier, both the Houses of Parliament were adjourned till 2 p.m. after the Opposition forcefully took up the Wikileaks expose about alleged payment to some MPs in the trust vote in 2008.Making the government's stand clear in the Rajya Sabha, the Finance Minister Mr. Pranab Mukherjee said that it can neither confirm nor deny the revelations made in the Wikileaks. He said it is a communication between a diplomatic mission and its sovereign government, which enjoys diplomatic immunity. Mr. Mukherjee said that the issue pertaining to 14th Lok Sabha can not be taken up in the 15th Lok Sabha as every Lok Sabha is sovereign. He also said the names that figure in the controversy enjoy diplomatic immunity and dared the BJP to file a public interest litigation saying that this evidence is not admissible in any court of Law in India.Contesting the government argument, the Leader of the Opposition in the House Mr. Arun Jaitley alleged that the incident took place outside Parliament and described it as a commission of an offence in India. He asserted that it is a bribery case involving Indian citizens. Amidst heated exchanges between the Treasury and the Opposition benches, the CPIM member Sitaram Yechury said that the Committee appointed to look into the cash for vote scam has recommended proper criminal investigation in the case. Amidst pandemonium, the Deputy Chairman K. Rahman Khan adjourned the House for the second time till 2 P.M.Earlier, the House was adjourned on the same issue till 12 noon.As the Lok Sabha assembled after the first adjournment at noon, there were heated exchanges between Treasury and the Opposition benches on the issue. As the BJP members started shouting slogans, the Presiding Officer adjourned the House till 2 P.M.Earlier, as the House met for the day, Mr. Gurudas Dasgupta of CPI urged the Prime Minister to make a statement in the House on the issue. He also wanted to know who is running the government at Centre.The Leader of the Opposition Mrs. Sushma Swaraj alleged that the government has lost its moral authority to rule the country and should resign. She said that this episode has brought disrepute to the country.Mr. Mulayam Singh Yadav who had supported the government in the trust vote sought a discussion on this issue. He said the Wikileaks are pointing fingers towards those who supported the UPA in the trust vote. Congress today charged BJP of gaining political mileage by raising the alleged payment to MPs issue in Parliament. Senior Party leader Keshav Rao told reporters outside Parliament that the Parliamentary committee constituted after the trust vote to look into the cash for vote scam probed it thoroughly and it has submitted its report. He alleged that the opposition is only interested in stalling the proceedings of Parliament.

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