Mamata Banerjee speaks to suspended Rajya Sabha MPs

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee

West Bengal Chief Minister and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee on Monday spoke to the eight Rajya Sabha MPs who were suspended for creating a ruckus in the House and sitting on a protest in the Parliament premises.

She appreciated their efforts in fighting for farmers and upholding the values of Parliament.

According to TMC leaders, Banerjee spoke to the eight MPs sitting on protest inside the Parliament premises near Mahatma Gandhi statue for over 10 minutes.

Earlier in the day, the TMC supremo slammed the government and condemned the suspension of eight MPs who fought to protect the interests of farmers in Parliament, dubbing the move as "unfortunate". She also came down heavily on the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government at the Centre protesting against its "undemocratic norms and principles" of functioning.

"Suspension of the eight MPs who fought to protect farmers' interests is unfortunate and reflective of this autocratic government's mindset that doesn't respect democratic norms and principles," Banerjee tweeted.

In the morning, Rajya Sabha Chairman M. Venkaiah Naidu suspended eight MPs, minutes after the House reconvened. These lawmakers from Trinamool, the Congress, CPI-M and AAP were accused of creating a ruckus in Parliament on Sunday.

The motion was moved by V. Muraleedharan, MoS for Parliamentary Affairs, following which the House suspended Derek O'Brien and Dola Sen of Trinamool Congress, Rajeev Satav, Ripun Bora, and Syed Naseer Hussain of Congress, Sanjay Singh of Aam Aadmi Party and KK Ragesh and E Kareem of Communist Party of India-Marxist.

The opposition members indulged in sloganeering after the resolution was moved by voice vote. Earlier, Naidu said that it was a "sad day for democracy" and "unfortunate" and "condemnable", as he rejected a no-confidence motion against Deputy Chairman Harivansh Narayan Singh.

The Rajya Sabha witnessed bedlam on Sunday as the government sought to clear two of the three contentious farm Bills amid unrelenting opposition protests. TMC MP Derek O'Brien tore up a rule book while Rajeev Satav and Sanjay Singh climbed on a table in the House to protest.

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