Advani laments House disruption again, says he feels like quitting

It was a scene similar to the one last week. The Lok Sabha had adjourned following disruptions over the Government-Opposition standoff on the demonetization debate, and BJP veteran LK Advani expressed his anguish over the stalling of Parliament. But, on Thursday, Advani went to the extent of saying that he felt like resigning.

After Speaker Sumitra Mahajan adjourned the House for the day at 12.25 pm on the penultimate day of the Winter session, Advani, from his seat in the front row, was seen talking to Textiles Minister Smriti Irani. Hearing him, she nudged Home Minister Rajnath Singh.

A visibly upset Advani asked Singh to convey to Lok Sabha Speaker to immediately take steps to end the logjam and run the House. "Tell her that I want leaders to be called and the issue be discussed. Call one leader from the Congress," Advani said.

The Home Minister heard him, nodded and left. The other ministers also left. Advani sat alone for a few minutes.

Seeing him alone, BJP MPs Ravindra Rai and Sunil Singh moved towards him. Trinamool Congress MP Idris Ali, who was among those who had shouted slogans in the House, also walked towards him.

"I feel like resigning," he was heard telling them. When Ali asked about the health of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Advani said he would have been very upset seeing the complete washout of the House.

"The only thing I want is that Parliament should run. This damages the image of Parliament. A complete washout is something we should not allow," Advani said.

The Winter Session, which has been a near washout, comes to an end on Friday. He wanted the House to function normally for at least a day.

He told MPs that there can be agreement and disagreement over demonetization, but parliamentarians should have patience to hear each other and debate the matter and not indulge in an ego battle.

"Whosoever wins this battle, Parliament will be the loser," he said. He left the House 15 minutes after the adjournment. Advani's fresh outburst also sparked off a blame game between the BJP and the Congress. Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi said that the veteran leader was "fighting for democratic values" within BJP.

"Thank you Advaniji for fighting for democratic values within your party," tweeted Gandhi, who had earlier accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of being "autocratic".

Congress spokesperson Abhishek Singhvi said Advani is "clearly berating his own party" and not Congress, as being "twisted" by the BJP.

Blaming the Opposition for disruptions in Parliament, Information and Broadcasting Minister and senior BJP leader M Venkaiah Naidu said that the Congress was adopting "spit and run" tactics to divert attention from the real issues.

"Everybody is sad. The way Parliament is not being allowed to function, the countrymen is sad. We are also sad. But what to do if some people deliberately and continuously not allow Parliament to function. It is a known fact who is rushing to the Well of the House," Naidu told reporters outside Parliament.

When asked to comment on Advani's remark, he said that "being a senior partyman, Advaniji is also feeling like that."

The veteran parliamentarian has often been seen in a pensive mood in Parliament during the session, unhappy over the frequent disruptions. Last week, he was visibly upset and said that neither the Parliamentary Affairs Minister nor the Speaker was running the House.