The Bihar assembly adjourned until noon on Tuesday, with opposition members standing in the well and screaming chants over the Centre’s rejection to award the state special status.
RJD, Congress, and Left leaders had arrived at the House, carrying placards with slogans such as “shame on the anti-Bihar BJP”.
Adding a dash of comedy, a few of them clutched rattles intended for children to emphasize that the Centre, despite denying the state its due, was offering a “jhunjhuna” by mentioning special packages and other sorts of assistance.
Inside the House, Speaker Nand Kishor Yadav repeatedly ordered them to take their seats, noting with concern that schoolchildren had come to witness the proceedings and the noise was making an unfavorable image on their minds.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Vijay Kumar Chaudhary agreed, challenging opposition members to raise the issue “from their seats and listen to the government’s response”.
Chaudhary, a member of the JD(U) led by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, also claimed that the Congress-led UPA, of which the RJD was a part, had “for the first time turned down the demand for special status”.
With no signs of relenting in the obstreperous behavior, the Speaker adjourned the House at 11.15 a.m.