The Lok Sabha on Wednesday afternoon witnessed dramatic and heated exchanges — the likes of which have not been seen in over a decade — during the tabling of the Constitution (130th Amendment) Bill, 2025. The Bill proposes that any Union or State minister facing charges of corruption or serious crimes and under detention for 30 days or more should be removed from office.
The session turned chaotic as BJP and TMC lawmakers nearly came to blows in the Well of the House. The uproar began the moment Union Home Minister Amit Shah stood to introduce the Bill, with Trinamool MPs rushing to the Well and raising slogans. Interestingly, other opposition members did not immediately join them. Soon after, Congress MPs voiced strong objections to the Bill. Tensions escalated further when Congress leader K C Venugopal, in his speech opposing the proposal, referred to Shah’s arrest in the Sohrabuddin Shaikh encounter case. Shah responded by pointing out that he had resigned as Gujarat Home Minister before his arrest. As arguments peaked, Venugopal dramatically tore up a copy of the Bill and flung it into the Well, prompting several other Congress and opposition MPs, including Samajwadi Party’s Dharmender Yadav, to follow suit. Soon after, the opposition benches collectively stormed the Well, shouting slogans. Amid the din, TMC’s Kalyan Banerjee positioned himself near Shah’s microphone and raised slogans while Shah was speaking. This led to Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju rushing to the scene, angrily urging Banerjee to step back. The Treasury benches then moved en masse towards the TMC MPs, prompting Shah himself to step in and call for restraint.
The Speaker, witnessing the chaos, adjourned proceedings until 3 pm. However, the heated exchanges continued even outside formal proceedings. When the House reconvened, 15 marshals stood on standby near the Well, sparking fresh protests from opposition members. The Speaker rebuked MPs for their behaviour and ordered the marshals back. Despite the continuing uproar and chants of “Modi sarkar hai hai” from the Opposition, Shah re-entered the House and chose a seat in the third row rather than the front. The Speaker allowed him to formally introduce the Bill amid the protests, and it was eventually cleared by a voice vote. Proceedings were then adjourned again until 5 pm.