Pro-Vidarbha activist raises slogans in press gallery of Maharashtra assembly

Nagpur: A pro-Vidarbha statehood activist and journalist on Thursday shouted slogans to highlight problems of farmers in the press gallery of the Maharashtra Legislative Assembly here when house proceedings were on.

Activist Prakash Pohare said he came to the press gallery of the assembly, which is having its winter session in Nagpur, as a representative of farmers to draw the attention of the house towards their problems.

Senior MLA Chetan Tupe, who was in the Chair at the time of the incident, ordered an inquiry into the episode after BJP chief whip Ashish Shelar raised the issue in the house and also referred to the December 13 security breach in the Lok Sabha.

A video showed Pohare, who is also the editor of a Marathi daily, walking out of the press gallery after shouting slogans with police accompanying him.

Talking to reporters outside the Vidhan Bhavan complex, Pohare justified his action, saying no one was raising issues of Vidarbha farmers and suicide by cultivators in the region in eastern Maharashtra.

The activist, a supporter of statehood for Vidarbha, said he has been coming to the Vidhan Bhavan for the last 5 to 6 days, but there was no mention of issues related to the region in the legislature.

Pohare said so far all working days of the legislature, whose winter session started on December 7, had been spent on discussions over the Maratha reservation issue.

He said legislators from Vidarbha were not raising important matters related to the region in the assembly or the council.

'No one is raising the issue of farmer suicides in Vidarbha or other problems faced by cultivators. I came as a representative of farmers to draw the attention of the house towards their problems,' Pohare asserted.

Tupe, who was overseeing the proceedings in the lower house, said action will be initiated against those shouting slogans from the press gallery of the assembly.

BJP chief whip Shelar raised questions over security in the assembly and referred to Wednesday's incident in the Lok Sabha where two persons jumped down from the visitors gallery.

"After what happened in Parliament yesterday, someone just walks into the press gallery of the assembly, gestures towards the speaker and shouts slogans. Who is this person? How did they get entry? How was he able to breach security of the legislative assembly?" asked an angry Shelar.

The BJP legislator and former state minister demanded an investigation into the matter. Acting on the demand, Tupe ordered an inquiry.