Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, centre, arrives at the Parliament House to attend the winter session of parliament in New Delhi yesterday. India's shaky government and the opposition yesterday locked horns as parliament re-opened for a crucial session that will see a recent string of pro-market reforms being hotly contested.
A no-confidence motion moved by Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress lawmakers against India's Congress-led UPA government was yesterday disallowed by the speaker as the winter session of Indian parliament began on a stormy note.
The motion moved by Trinamool Congress over the government's decision to allow foreign investment in retail sector was disallowed in Lok Sabha by Speaker Meria Kumar. Trinamool's move was supported only by Biju Janata Dal, a regional party ruling eastern state of Odisha, and lacked requisite numbers.
Key ruling UPA supporters Samajwadi Party (SP) and Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) triggered uproar in both Houses of Parliament leading to the adjournment of proceedings for the day.
In the Lok Sabha, SP members trooped into the well protesting the government's decision to impose a limit on supply of subsidized cooking gas for households while BSP members were in the well demanding dismissal of the SP government in Uttar Pradesh on the ground of law and order.
Some BJP members were heard saying that SP and BSP were helping the government through their protests.