Almost two-thirds of opposition INDIA bloc MPs suspended from Lok Sabha

After a string of suspensions in Lok Sabha, the INDIA bloc has lost more than two-thirds of its strength for the duration of the Winter Session and only nine MPs of the principal opposition Congress, including former party presidents Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, are left in the House. On Tuesday, 49 opposition MPs were suspended for the remaining part of the session for disrupting proceedings, taking the total tally of suspended MPs in Lok Sabha to 95. The INDIA bloc parties had a strength of 138 in Lok Sabha, of which 43 MPs are now left in the House.

Congress’ floor leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and Trinamool Congress’ floor leader Sudip Bandyopadhyay are among those suspended. So far, 13 of the 22 Trinammol Congress MPs have been suspended.

From the DMK, which has a strength of 24 members in the House, 16 MPs have been suspended. Aam Aadmi Party’s lone Lok Sabha MP Sushil Kumar Rinku was also suspended.

Among other INDIA bloc parties, three Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) MPs belonging to the Sharad Pawar faction, including floor leader Supriya Sule, have been suspended out of the four who are supporting the opposition.

From the National Conference, two of the three MPs, including Farooq Abdullah, were suspended.

None of the six MPs of Shiv Sena (UBT) have been suspended INDIA bloc MPs have been protesting in the House to press for a statement from Home Minister Amit Shah on the security breach in Parliament on December 13. All three MPs of the Indian Union Muslim League, lone MPs from VCK and RSP, two of the three Samajwadi Party MPs, including Dimple Yadav, two of three MPs of the CPI(M), and one of the two MPs of CPI have been suspended. Danish Ali, who was recently suspended from the BSP, is also among the MPs suspended from the Lower House. The BSP is not a part of the opposition bloc.