A scuffle broke out between police forces and Kerala's Congress MPs on Thursday, while they were protesting outside Parliament against the Silverline project. The MPs alleged they were manhandled by security personnel while returning to the Parliament after staging a protest at Vijay Chowk.
Congress general secretary and Rajya Sabha MP K.C. Venugopal said the security personnel's behaviour was unprecedented in the history of Indian Parliament. "We will raise the issue in Parliament and move a privilege motion," he told Onmanorama. Congress MP Ramya Haridas said she was manhandled by male police personnel.
“Silver line project proposed by Kerala govt is anti-people. Most people are in fear of eviction. Kerala is an economically fragile state... this is not an economically viable project,” Venugopal told ANI.
The incident comes on the day Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan met with PM Modi to request the Centre’s sanction for the Rs 63,000-crore semi high-speed rail project. The move is critical amid mounting protests from the Congress as well as BJP in the state. The CM is expected to request Modi to fast-track sanction of the Detailed Project Report (DPR) of the Silverline that’s lying with the Union Ministry of Railways.
The Rajya Sabha on Wednesday witnessed an argument between CPI(M) and BJP MPs with both accusing each other of doing politics over the project. CPI(M) MP John Brittas alleged in the Upper House of Parliament that Railways Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw was doing "petty politics" over the project and the Congress as well as the Muslim League were "hand in glove" over it. Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs V Muraleedharan accused the Kerala government of "misleading" the people about the K-Rail project and termed the opposition's protest "ill-motivated".
Citing the ecological and social implications of the project, Venugopal questioned the "bulldozer" approach of the Kerala government to push through with the project. "There is no environmental impact study... The people of Kerala will be in a very difficult situation," he said.
-with PTI inputs
