Opposition walks out of RS, this time over price rise
09 Dec 2011
The opposition staged a walk-out from the Rajya Sabha on Thursday - only the second day that Parliament has actually functioned since it officially convened for the winter session on 22 November.
This time the issue was inflation. Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee sought to refute the opposition's charge that the government had done little to bring down the prices of essential commodities and control runaway inflation, to the detriment of the common man.
Replying to a discussion on the price rise in the Rajya Sabha, he maintained that government action has helped maintain a leash on the prices of many essential commodities. He said many commodities had become cheaper or gone up only marginally in the last two years.
However, the opposition was not satisfied with the explanation and led by the Bharatiya Janata Party, staged a walk-out from the house.
Mukherjee said several issues were to blame for the price rise, including a poor distribution system, a troubled international economy and rise in global petroleum prices.
Nonetheless retail prices of 30 essential commodities including that of rice, wheat and pulses have either dropped or registered only marginal increase during the last two years, he said.
.webp)
