Shantanu Sen suspended, IT Minister says TMC bringing culture of violence to Parliament

Trinamool Congress MP Shantanu Sen on Friday was suspended by the Rajya Sabha for the entire Parliament session. Sen, on Thursday, tore documents related to Pegasus from the hands of IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.

“I am deeply distressed by the course of events in the House. Unfortunately, proceedings of the House hit a new low with papers being snatched from the Minister and torn into pieces. Such actions are a clear assault on our Parliamentary democracy,” said Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu.

“Santanu Sen, please withdraw from the House. Allow the House to function,” said Naidu before adjourning House till 12 noon following an uproar that started during TMC MP Derek O’Brien’s statement over Thursday’s incident.

As the Rajya Sabha began on Friday, Union Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs V. Muraleedharan’s proposal to suspend the TMC MP for the entire Parliament session was accepted in the House. However, Opposition leaders Anand Sharma and Mallikarjun Kharge opposed the motion.

Point of order raised by TMC MP Sukhendu Shekhar Roy and raised the objection mentioning that there was no list of business mention for the motion moved against Shantanu sen. Earlier in the day, Leader of the House in Rajya Sabha Piyush Goyal met Chairman Venkaiah Naidu over the issue of snatching of a paper from the hands of IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and tearing it off by TMC MP Santanu Sen, said sources. Deputy Leader of Rajya Sabha Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi and Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs V. Muraleedharan were also present at the meeting.

Asked about the incident, Vaishnaw said, “TMC has a culture of violence in Bengal. They are trying to bring the same to Parliament. What message do they want to give to the next generation of Parliamentarians?”