Chaos In Madhya Pradesh Assembly As Opposition Demands Minister's Resignation

The fifth day of the monsoon session of the Madhya Pradesh Assembly witnessed chaos as opposition MLAs launched a sharp attack against Cabinet Minister Vijay Shah, demanding his resignation. The House reverberated with slogans of "Vijay Shah resign" as soon as the minister rose to respond to a departmental query. 

The uproar forced Speaker Narendra Singh Tomar to adjourn the proceedings twice, first for ten minutes and then for half an hour before finally adjourning the House till August 4.

When the session resumed, Leader of Opposition Umang Singhar reignited the issue, accusing the government of shielding Shah despite serious questions being raised by the Supreme Court. 

Responding to the opposition, Minister Kailash Vijayvargiya countered by accusing Congress of speaking "Pakistan's language" and disrespecting the dignity of the House.

Cabinet Minister Vishwas Sarang also lashed out at the Congress, saying, "Once again, Congress tried to turn the House into a political battleground. They created a ruckus over a question related to gas victims, which is extremely insensitive. Secondly, if a matter is pending in court, then raising it in the House is not only against tradition but also an insult to its dignity. In the true sense, Congress should apologise to the army."

Sarang further said, "Congress has consistently insulted the armed forces. Do Congress leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, even have the right to be in the Assembly? These are the same people who are out on bail. Are they fit to be in the House? What happened today has completely shredded the dignity of the Assembly."

Leader of the Opposition Umang Singhar sharply criticised the state government for ignoring the Supreme Court's orders, accusing it of protecting Vijay Shah instead of making him apologise. He also accused the government of avoiding important discussions on tribal evictions by changing the subject.

Singhar said, "I firmly believe the government is shamelessly ignoring the Supreme Court's directions. The court said Vijay Shah must apologise publicly, but he refuses to do so. Instead, the Chief Minister continues to honour him in the cabinet. Isn't this an insult to women? Isn't this an insult to public service? To divert attention, the Parliamentary Affairs Minister started talking about tribal issues. But I want to remind the government that we had submitted an adjournment motion on this matter eight days ago. Tribals are being evicted from forests in the name of rights. Why is the government avoiding this discussion? The people who are spreading lies in the House are nowhere to be seen during critical discussions."

Raising the matter again after five days, Singhar mocked Shah's brief appearance in the Assembly saying, "Today, Vijay Shah came to the House like a comet and disappeared just like one."

Meanwhile, Minister Vijay Shah remains under the scanner from both the House and the Supreme Court. The apex court had earlier expressed dissatisfaction with Shah's online apology and asked, "Where is the public apology?" 

Acting on its direction, a three-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) was constituted on May 19 and began its probe the next day. The SIT, which made the government rest house in Indore's Banganga area its base, visited Raukunda village in Mhow on May 21, where Shah made the controversial remark during a Halma event. 

From May 22, the SIT started recording statements and collected testimonies from over 125 individuals including BJP leaders on stage, MLA Usha Thakur, the university vice-chancellor, event organiser Deepmala Rawat, journalists, former ministers, students, NCC cadets, and volunteers from various social organizations. The entire process was supported by Indore police and documented thoroughly before being submitted to the court on May 28. The SIT is expected to file its next response before the Supreme Court on August 13.