Namtara: Privilege rap against Bikram Arukh

Bhubaneswar: Congress member Devendra Sharma today moved a privilege motion against Parliamentary Affairs minister Bikram Keshari Arukh accusing him of giving false information on Namtara firing incident, in the State Assembly on Wednesday.

In his notice, Sharma, who represents Aul constituency in Kendrapara district where the incident happened, said during a debate over an adjournment motion, the minister had informed the House that there was blank-firing by the police to disperse the agitated crowd in Namtara and that no one was injured in it. However, the fact is that six persons have got bullet injuries on the March 8 incident, claimed Sharma.

Sharma’s party colleagues Taraprasad Bahinipati and Prafulla Majhi supported his privilege notice. The Congress members later marched into the well of the House and demanded speaker’s ruling over the issue.

The Opposition also brought another privilege notice against the Parliamentary Affairs minister over his remark on Wednesday that the chief minister is meeting other Union ministers in Delhi to discuss about the interests of the State.

They alleged that in the chief minister's schedule on March 11, there was no mention about his working that day. Hence, Arukh’s remark shows he had given false information to the House, the argued.