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Updated: Jul 09, 2019 23:40 IST

The unfolding political crisis in Karnataka echoed in both Houses of Parliament on Tuesday with the Congress and some opposition parties stalling business and accusing the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of trying to destabilise the state’s coalition government.

The Congress, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) staged a walkout from the Lok Sabha. The Congress first tried to raise the issue during Zero Hour (a span of 60 minutes given to MPs to raise issues), but was disallowed by speaker Om Birla, who insisted that the matter had already been discussed in the House on Monday with a response from defence minister Rajnath Singh. The Congress had also given an adjournment motion to discuss the Karnataka issue, which was rejected by the speaker.

Congress leader in the Lok Sabha, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, said the BJP was targeting the Karnataka government. “The politics of poaching should be stopped. The politics of targeting should be stopped. Today it is Karnataka and tomorrow it will be Madhya Pradesh,” he said.

“You say you have no role in Karnataka. But when an MLA comes out of Raj Bhavan, there is a car ready for him, when he is at the airport, there is an aircraft ready for him....The politics of poaching and targeting must be stopped,” he said as other members of the party shouted slogans against the BJP. United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi and senior leader Rahul Gandhi were also seen joining the slogan shouting.

In the Rajya Sabha, uproar by the Congress stalled pre-noon proceedings with practically no business conducted in the House.Within minutes of assembly of the House, Congress members stormed into the well shouting slogans against the BJP, which it has blamed for instigating a rebellion within the Congress-Janata Dal(Secular) government in Karnataka. The House was finally adjourned till 2pm.

The crisis in the Karnataka coalition was triggered by the resignation of 12 MLAs on Saturday, and the loss of support of two more independent legislators on Monday. The opposition BJP has claimed that the alliance’s strength in the assembly has slipped below the majority mark even as troubleshooters from the coalition attempt to win back rebel MLAs.

On Monday, in response to a question by Chowdhury, Singh had made it clear that the Centre had no role to play in the political developments of Karnataka. He reiterated the same position on Tuesday, saying that the issue was an internal matter of the Congress. “The Congress cannot get its house in order and is disrupting the Lower House,” he added.

In the Lok Sabha, Birla had earlier warned Congress members from trooping into the Well, shouting slogans and showing placards. He pointed out that he allowed the Congress to speak on the issue on Monday. “But don’t give out an impression outside Parliament that it is a place for sloganeering and showing placards. Don’t make the House look like a municipal corporation hall,” he said.

In the Rajya Sabha, slogans by Congress members implying democracy was being killed, first forced an adjournment until 12pm. When the House re-assembled at noon to take up the Question Hour, slogan-shouting Congress and Trinamool Congress members, who were protesting against the privatization of private sector units, trooping in the well of the House.

Deputy chairman Harivansh, who was chairing the proceedings, made repeated efforts to persuade protesting members to return to their seats but his appeals went unheeded.