In an unprecedented act in the history of Parliament, Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh Narayan Singh went on a one-day fast on Tuesday to express his anguish over the Opposition MPs’ “unruly” behaviour during the vote on the farm Bills on Sunday.
He also wrote letter to President Ram Nath Kovind and Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu narrating the incident which had led him to announce the token fast in front of the Mahatma Gandhi statue in Parliament.
Harivansh announced his fast shortly after he met eight Rajya Sabha members protesting on the lawns on the Parliament complex and offered them tea, a gesture that the MPs snubbed.
“After what happened on Sunday, I have been extremely anguished, distressed and in mental agony and have been unable to sleep for the past two days... “In the name of democracy, Opposition members behaved in a violent manner and there were attempts to intimidate the Chair,” Harivansh wrote in his letter.
AAP Member of Parliament Sanjay Singh, who spent the night under open sky on dharna in Parliament, said the Deputy Chairman arrived early in the morning with a posse of news cameras and was told by a senior MP to visit them without the cameras and sit with them.
In letters to President Ram Nath Kovind and Vice President Venkaiah Naidu, Harivansh wrote that he “will observe a one-day fast till tomorrow as he was anguished over Opposition attacks in the House”.
The 64-year-old, who was recently appointed Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha for the second time, said: “Whatever happened in front of me on September 20 has caused unimaginable loss to dignity of House... The rulebook was torn and thrown at me. Some MPs also stood on the table, used unparliamentary language against me. I kept recalling the entire incident and was unable to sleep.”
He referred to iconic Bihar leaders like Ram Manohar Lohia and Karpuri Thakur and added he hailed from Jayprakash Narayan’s village. “I learnt a lot from him, I took part in JP Movement and my political background is from Bihar where the Vaishali Republic is known for democracy,” he said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi also came out in support of Harivansh in his tweets, praising the “inspiring and statesmanlike conduct” of “MP from Bihar and Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairperson Shri Harivansh Ji’’.
Describing the Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman’s letter to the President as “inspiring and praiseworthy”, the PM - who tweeted the letter - urged “the people of the country to read it”.
Naidu had on Monday rejected the Opposition’s no-confidence motion against his deputy.
Opposition parties accused Harivansh of helping the Government push farm Bills in the Rajya Sabha despite the lack of numbers. Harivansh had overruled Opposition demands to extend the debate on the farm Bills or even refer them to a select committee.
