Lucknow: A political squabble over the Muzaffarnagar communal clashes, which left nearly 50 dead and 40,000 in relief camps, had legislators coming to blows in the Uttar Pradesh assembly today after a state minister asked an MLA to "shut up".
BJP MLA Upendra Tewari was in the middle of a sharp tirade against the Akhilesh Yadav government over the arrest warrants against his party colleagues when minister Ambika Choudhary interrupted him with a "shut up".
All BJP MLAs immediately stormed towards the Speaker's chair in protest, and moments later, several ministers and BJP legislators started pushing each other.
The unpleasant scenes had Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav offering a quick apology, "I regret the remarks of my minister. They should be removed from the records."
But Mr Yadav asserted that his concession did not mean that BJP MLAs booked for inciting communal violence in Muzaffarnagar would be spared. "Action will be taken against them," he said.
The UP police say MLAs against whom warrants were issued on Wednesday can be arrested "anytime". The arrests were suspended for the assembly session, which got over today.
Two BJP MLAs face arrest, along with seven others from the Congress, BSP and Bhartiya Kisan Party for addressing gatherings that were banned to prevent any flare-up after the killing of three young men, two Jats and one Muslim, in village Kawal.
The UP government has accused them all of stoking communal flames with incendiary speeches.
An earlier attempt to arrest the BJP MLAs ended with a dramatic show of strength by BJP supporters led by Uma Bharati just outside the state assembly on Wednesday. A police team went and returned without arresting the MLAs, as Uma Bharati warned of "consequences".
BJP MLA Upendra Tewari was in the middle of a sharp tirade against the Akhilesh Yadav government over the arrest warrants against his party colleagues when minister Ambika Choudhary interrupted him with a "shut up".
All BJP MLAs immediately stormed towards the Speaker's chair in protest, and moments later, several ministers and BJP legislators started pushing each other.
The unpleasant scenes had Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav offering a quick apology, "I regret the remarks of my minister. They should be removed from the records."
But Mr Yadav asserted that his concession did not mean that BJP MLAs booked for inciting communal violence in Muzaffarnagar would be spared. "Action will be taken against them," he said.
The UP police say MLAs against whom warrants were issued on Wednesday can be arrested "anytime". The arrests were suspended for the assembly session, which got over today.
Two BJP MLAs face arrest, along with seven others from the Congress, BSP and Bhartiya Kisan Party for addressing gatherings that were banned to prevent any flare-up after the killing of three young men, two Jats and one Muslim, in village Kawal.
The UP government has accused them all of stoking communal flames with incendiary speeches.
An earlier attempt to arrest the BJP MLAs ended with a dramatic show of strength by BJP supporters led by Uma Bharati just outside the state assembly on Wednesday. A police team went and returned without arresting the MLAs, as Uma Bharati warned of "consequences".
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