Uproar in RS over Antulay remarks

The controversial remarks of Union Minister A R Antulay on the killing of Maharashtra ATS chief created uproar in the Rajya Sabha for the second consecutive day today with the opposition demanding his immediate sacking.

The controversial remarks of Union Minister A R Antulay on the killing of Maharashtra ATS chief created uproar in the Rajya Sabha for the second consecutive day on Friday with the opposition demanding his immediate sacking.

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Before staging a walkout in support of their demand, the opposition members, mostly belonging to NDA, wanted to know why Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was "silent". Raising the issue during Zero Hour, S S Ahluwalia (BJP) wondered why the Prime Minister did not come out with a statement immediately. "In whose hands is Antulay playing -- Dawood or ISI?" he asked.

When Manohar Joshi (Shiv Sena) said Antulay should not be part of the Cabinet and should be dropped immediately, he drew spontaneous support from many other opposition members. Bharatkumar Raut (Shiv Sena) said Antulay chose to air his views "very meticulously" when the Lok Sabha was discussing the anti-terror laws.

"Antulay raised the issue outside Parliament. He could have raised it inside the House," he said adding that it was a design to create an atmosphere of suspicion and disturb the socio-religious harmony in the country. He said the Prime Minister should seek an apology from the Minister and sack him, otherwise, he should be impeached. Responding to the members' concerns, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs V Narayanasamy said External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee will respond before Parliament adjourns on December 23. This did not satisfy the opposition and they staged a walkout.