Rajya Sabha proceedings adjourned till 2 pm due to uproar over JNU, J&K

NEW DELHI: Rajya Sabha proceedings on Tuesday were adjourned till 2 pm after opposition uproar over alleged police action on protesting JNU students in the national capital and detention of political leaders in Jammu and Kashmir.

Soon after the House met for the day, Left and other opposition party members raised the two issues.

Around 100 JNU students were detained and some were injured when police allegedly baton-charged protesters as they marched towards Parliament on Monday, demanding a total rollback of the hostel fee hike.

Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu said the adjournment notices received from members do not warrant setting aside the listed business of the day.

"You will be disturbing the entire House. That is not a matter to adjourn business," he said and warned members that he would be forced to adjourn proceedings if they continued protests.

But the members were unrelenting and continued to raise the issues from their seats.

Naidu called for Zero Hour mentions but with opposition members unrelenting, he adjourned the proceedings till 2 pm.

Earlier, the House mourned the death of former Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe, who Naidu described as a "true friend of India" and one of the tallest world leaders.

Mugabe died on September 6 at the age of 95.

The House also congratulated Abhijit Banerjee for winning the Nobel Prize for Economics.

Naidu said Banerjee, Esther Duflo and Michael Kremer won the prestigious award for their experimental approach to alleviating global poverty.

Banerjee winning the Nobel is indeed a matter of great pride for India, he said.