New Delhi: A Parliamentary committee witnessed uproar on Tuesday over Opposition MPs’ demand for an immediate discussion on police action against protesting students, including use of pellet guns, sources said, amid in…

New Delhi: A Parliamentary committee witnessed uproar on Tuesday over Opposition MPs’ demand for an immediate discussion on police action against protesting students, including use of pellet guns, sources said, amid indications that the panel may soon discuss Standing Operating Procedures (SoP) with regard to use of force by police against protesters.At a meeting of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Home Affairs called to discuss crimes against children, sources said senior Congress MP Ajay Maken demanded that police atrocities against protesters should be discussed, including use of pellet guns and electric batons among others as also police personnel without name plates and not in uniform targeting agitators.FIR over pellet injuries during Delhi stir: Sajad Lone asks Rahul Gandhi why Kashmir victims didn’t get similar pushMaken had earlier written a letter to panel chairman Radha Mohan Das Agrawal seeking a discussion but the latter, during the meeting, said that the issue cannot be taken up as it was sub judice. Agrawal told the MPs that as the rules suggest that Parliament does not discuss issues under courts’ examination and it extends to the committees. It was pointed out by the Chairman that the Supreme Court has already ordered a probe by a five-member committee and the terms of reference included the issues raised by families of police personnel. The Congress MP got support from Opposition MPs, including Congress’ Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Muslim League’s Haris Beeran and RJD’s Sanjay Yadav. Trinamool Congress MP Derek O’Brien was also among the lawmakers who raised the issue.BPSC protest: Why are government job aspirants protesting in Bihar?Maken said the panel adopts a different procedure compared to the Supreme Court, as they collect information directly from officials. He also said if they do not discuss the children’s issues like these who else would.Sources said a BJP MP then referred to 1984 anti-Sikh riots and raised questions about police action at that time and this was countered by a Congress MP, who claimed that he would have to then raise the issue of fake encounters in a BJP-ruled state. While there was a war of words over this, sources said, a view emerged that state subjects should not be discussed there.From Swaraj to ward committees: Can India bring democracy closer to citizens?As the heated debate continued, sources said Agrawal suggested that they could discuss SOPs with regard to use of police by police against protesters as early as the next meeting, which was acceptable to the Opposition MPs.DH had earlier reported that Opposition MPs were planning to raise the police action against protesting students at the panel meeting on July 27 but it was cancelled. Sources said Maken later sent a letter seeking a discussion on the issue during the August 5 meeting but it was not taken up, as it was not on agenda. Maken was also not present during that meeting, sources said.

Source: Deccan Herald