Parliament Uproar: Deportation Debate Halts Proceedings

Both Houses of India's Parliament were adjourned amidst unrest over the deportation of over 100 Indian nationals from the US. Opposition MPs demanded a discussion, causing disruptions during a session on the Union Budget 2025-2026. The ongoing debate echoes previous interruptions observed in the session.

Both Houses of the Indian Parliament were suspended until noon on Thursday following a political upheaval over the deportation of more than 100 Indian nationals allegedly residing illegally in the United States. Members of Parliament from the opposition were relentless in their demands for a thorough discussion on the deportation issue.

Despite the Lok Sabha Speaker, Om Birla, urging MPs to avoid premeditated disruptions to maintain the House's effective functioning, the interruptions persisted. Birla emphasized that the issue fell under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of External Affairs and assured that the government was already addressing the matter, urging MPs to respect the importance of the Question Hour session.

The chaos unfolded while Union Civil Aviation Minister Ram Mohan Naidu responded to inquiries from Trinamool Congress MP Kirti Azad. The budget discussion on the Union Budget 2025-2026, which Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had presented recently, was ongoing at the time. As tension escalated, the session was promptly adjourned.

Congress MPs such as Manickram Tagore, Gaurav Gogoi, and KC Venugopal had filed adjournment motions to focus on the deportation of Indian nationals. The deportees arrived in Amritsar, Punjab, aboard a US Air Force plane on Wednesday. This incident adds to a series of disturbances in the current Budget session, which had already been interrupted during Rahul Gandhi's speech earlier in the week.

The Budget session began on January 31, marked by President Droupadi Murmu's inauguration speech. It is scheduled to continue in its first segment until February 13, with a second phase set to resume on March 10 and conclude on April 4.