Opposition members walk out of Rajya Sabha over Manipur issue

New Delhi: Opposition members led by Congress MPs walked out of Rajya Sabha proceedings on Thursday over their demand for a discussion on the Manipur situation.

When the Upper House, which was adjourned twice in the pre-lunch session amid continuous sloganeering by members of both treasury benches and the opposition, reassembled for the post-lunch period, Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur moved the Cinematograph (Amendment) Bill, 2023 amid sloganeering by the opposition members.

When Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge was given the floor by Deputy Chairman Harivansh, members of the treasury benches started shouting.

Kharge said he wanted to speak on the bill as well as "dil ki baat" and tried to bring up the Manipur issue which was disallowed by the deputy chairman saying he should restrict himself to speaking on the bill as per rules of the House.

Subsequently, the opposition members walked out of the House even as it continued discussion on the bill.