Bhopal, Dec 1 The five-day Winter Session of the Madhya Pradesh Vidhan Sabha started with vociferous protests and a novel play by the Opposition members in and outside the House on Monday.
As the day's business began, Congress legislators led by the Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the state Assembly, Umang Singhar, braving the December cold, staged a symbolic protest that caught widespread media attention.
A group of Congress MLAs arrived holding posters highlighting the Coldrif cough syrup tragedy that killed over 25 children in Chhindwara and other adjoining districts a few months back.
The children, mostly under five years of age, suffered acute kidney failure and severe brain damage after consuming the contaminated syrup. Laboratory tests confirmed that the Coldrif syrup contained dangerously high levels of diethylene glycol (DEG), with one batch showing a concentration of nearly 48.6 per cent, significantly above the internationally accepted safe limit of 0.1 per cent.
The Opposition MLAs' protest over the tragedy took a novel form as they performed a scripted play to highlight the Coldrif cough syrup tragedy. One woman Congress MLA played the role of demoness 'Surpanakha' and Singhar had a dialogue with her.
While this dramatic protest was going on, a group of Congress MLAs was standing in a circle with posters carrying slogans blaming the ruling BJP for the horrific incident.
"Corruption has peaked under the BJP government and the list of scams is growing. More than 25 innocent children have died due to the contaminated Coldrif cough syrup in Chhindwara," Singhar told media persons.
He accused the BJP government of trying to suppress the Opposition's voice and divert attention from public issues by curtailing the session's length.
The five-day Vidhan Sabha session will have four sittings for discussion on key issues and at least three key Bills (Amendment) will be presented in the House.
For the ongoing Winter session, the Assembly Secretariat has received a total of 1,497 questions from the Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) of the state.
It has also received 194 notices for calling-attention motions, six adjournment motions, 14 private members' resolutions, 52 zero-hour submissions, two notices under Rule 139 and 15 petitions.
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