Cong MLAs take off shirts in protest, BJP demands censure

Ahmedabad: Congress MLAs held a protest outside the state assembly demanding adequate power supply for farmers. However, due to two Congress MLAs removing their shirts, the ruling BJP demanded action against these MLAs and asked the speaker to reprimand the MLAs who started the protest on the assembly premises.
Some 15 Congress MLAs sat on protest near the main gate of the Assembly building for about 10 minutes, during which legislators Vimal Chudasama and Lalit Vasoya removed their shirts.
The ruling BJP after question hour raised an objection to the protest, stating that holding a protest without the speaker’s permission was not permissible. Speaker Nima Acharya said she would give her ruling after going through video of the incident.
Speaking to reporters, Chudasama said, “While the BJP government makes tall claims that farmers are getting enough electricity, it is a fact that most farmers in Gujarat are not getting adequate electricity for irrigation. In the absence of irrigation, standing crops, including coconut trees, are dying. We are protesting here to draw the government’s attention to this crucial issue.”
BJP chief whip Pankaj Desai, who raised an objection to the “shirtless” protest by Chudasama and Vasoya, said no such protest is allowed in the vicinity of the assembly. Education minister Jitu Vaghani said Congress MLAs should have refrained from removing their clothes in front of women police personnel, MLAs and government officers who enter the complex through that gate.