House adjourned amid sparring by AAP, BJP over bus marshal issue

The AAP and BJP took a dig at each other over the issue of bus marshals and tabling Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) reports in the House on the first day of a two-day session on Thursday.

The House was adjourned for 15 minutes after the BJP MLAs protested against Speaker Ram Niwas Goel’s refusal to take up an adjournment motion over the alleged failures of the AAP-led Delhi Government.

The House was adjourned for 15 minutes after the BJP MLAs protested against Speaker Ram Niwas Goel’s refusal to take up an adjournment motion over the alleged failures of the AAP-led Delhi Government.

After the House resumed, the Speaker allowed AAP MLA Kuldeep Kumar to speak on bus marshals. Kumar said the Kejriwal-led government had initiated the scheme to provide security to women in Delhi buses.

“LG (VK Saxena) goes to the roads and posts pictures about it on X, but he doesn’t have time to meet protesting bus marshals,” Kumar said. Both opposition leader Vijender Gupta and AAP MLAs demanded that the marshals be given permanent jobs, amid protests.

The BJP MLAs displayed banners to table the CAG reports in the Assembly. On Wednesday, the LG office had urged the Chief Secretary to ask Chief Minister Atishi to table the pending reports.

The two-day Assembly session commenced with obituary references, paying tribute to CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury and soldiers who were killed in the line of duty.

This session also marks Atishi's debut as CM. The session proceeded with special mentions, allowing legislators to address issues concerning their constituencies with the chair's approval.

During the session, the AAP government was expected to demonstrate its majority. The session took place just four days after the new Delhi Cabinet was sworn in. With 60 of 70 seats, the AAP holds a strong majority in the House, while the BJP has seven members, and three seats remain vacant.