Heated scenes lead to continued adjournments in Odisha Assembly

Bhubaneswar, Aug 24: The Odisha Assembly on Saturday was adjourned until 4 pm for the fifth consecutive day due to heated exchanges and disruptions. The adjournment followed the passing of a censure motion against two BJD legislators, Romancha Biswal and Madhab Dhada, for their disruptive conduct towards Speaker Surama Padhy the previous day.

Earlier, during Zero Hour, BJD and Congress MLAs gathered in the well of the House and distributed leaflets addressing the reservation issue. The BJP accused the Opposition of misbehavior towards the Speaker and demanded an apology, which led the Speaker to briefly suspend proceedings.

Government Chief Whip Saroj Pradhan moved the censure motion against Biswal and Dhada, who, along with other members, attempted to climb onto the Speaker's podium after Opposition legislators protested in the well of the House, highlighting the recent hooch tragedy in Ganjam district.

When the Assembly reconvened, the Opposition continued to protest, criticizing the government for not implementing reservation policies for SC/ST and OBC communities in line with their population proportions.

CLP leader Rama Chandra Kadam expressed concerns that while OBCs constitute 54% of Odisha's population and SC/ST communities make up about 40%, reservations have not been adjusted accordingly. He also demanded a caste census and an OBC commission in the state and warned of street protests if their demands are not addressed.