Shiv Sena shocks ally BJP in Parliament

The Bhartiya Janata Party was in for shock and embarrassment on Friday when MPs of National Democratic Alliance ally Shiv Sena brought placards in both the Houses of Parliament and raised slogans for dismissal of its government in Karnataka.

Equally perturbed was the Congress as United Progressive Alliance ally Nationalist Congress Party MPs too joined the Sena protest, both inside Parliament and outside. A Congress leader wondered if it was the beginning of a new political alignment in Maharashtra.

Members of both parties sprang a surprise with their demand even as the BJP and Left members created a ruckus demanding resignation of Home Minister P Chidambaram for helping a fraudster hotelier, forcing adjournment of the question hour and then for the day to meet again on Monday.

The Shiv Sena and NCP members were protesting against alleged atrocities on the Marathi-speaking people in Karnataka's Belgaum area on the border of Maharashtra.

The Samajwadi Party members also jumped into well in both the Houses, displaying newspapers on alleged diversion of the central funds by Bahujan Samaj Party chief minister Mayawati's government in Uttar Pradesh.

After letting Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee reply to a question amid din, Speaker Meira Kumar adjourned the House till noon while Deputy Speaker Karia Munda got the Railways' supplementary budget passed amid pandemonium before adjourning for the day.

Same scenes were witnessed in the Rajya Sabha where former Lok Sabha Speaker Manohar Joshi trooped into the well with his Shiv Sena colleagues demanding dismissal of the Karnataka government, even as other Opposition parties shouting for dismissal of Chidambaram.

Chairman Hamid Ansari adjourned the House till noon and later for the day.