NEW DELHI, Mar 16 (IANS): The Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) was on Tuesday put on the mat over a multi-crore-rupee money garland given to its leader and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Mayawati with SP, Congress and BJP MPs questioning the extravagance in the Lok Sabha, leading to two adjournments.
"An investigation should be initiated to reveal the source of the money," Congress MP Jagadambika Pal told reporters outside parliament after the second adjournment of the house at 1 pm.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MPs also joined the protest to demand an inquiry into the extravaganza.
BJP MP Yogi Adityanath said: "We would like to know the source of money. She is the chief minister of the state. So, the people have the right to know about the source of the money."
The house was first adjourned during zero hour after Samajwadi Party chief Mulayam Singh Yadav and Jagadambika Pal tried to raise the issue. Speaker Meira Kumar, however, invited other MPs who had given notice earlier to speak on other topics.
MPs from the SP and Congress belonging to Uttar Pradesh were up on their feet while BSP members protested noisily. Amid the uproar, the speaker adjourned the house for 40 minutes at 12.20 pm.
The unrest continued when the house reassembled at 1. The MPs asked Deputy Speaker Karia Munda to allow them to raise the matter. But he said the chair did not receive any notice from the MPs on the matter.
The MPs continued protest and the deputy speaker adjourned the house till 2 p.m.
Critics alleged that the multi-crore garland was just a small part of the extravagant Rs.200 crore celebrations Monday to mark 25 years of the BSP and party founder Kanshi Ram's birth anniversary.
The garland made of thousands of Rs 1,000 currency notes was presented to Mayawati at the rally in Lucknow on Monday.
