Derek O' Brien gives speech from Parliament corridor; demands discussion on Delhi violence

New Delhi: In an unprecedented act, TMC Rajya Sabha member Derek O'Brien on Friday gave a 10-minute speech, not in the House, but from a corridor of the Parliament building, in protest against, what he called, the government's reluctance to discuss the Delhi violence.

Before beginning his speech, O'Brien, who is leader of the party in Rajya Sabha, said that opposition parties have given notices five days in a row to discuss the issue, but these have not been accepted.

He alleged that the government is stalling work in both the Houses.

"I have been ready with the speech on behalf of the TMC. Mr Chairman sir what can I do, the government is stalling Parliament. Today on Friday, I need to make my speech and I am making it not in the chamber downstairs but on the first floor. We have to look at different ways to have our voices heard. So here I am," he said.

O'Brien also uploaded a video of his speech on social media.

Speaking about different stories of pain and loss during the violence in northeast Delhi in which 53 people have lost their lives, O'Brien said despite all these, the government was unwilling to discuss the issue.

"The home minister hasn't visited affected areas...The violence started from inciting slogans. We all know the people who did it. What gives them the guts to utter these slogans? It is the prime minister, the home minister. It is almost as if they have sanctioned these slogans. These slogans spread bigotry and hate.

"All Modi and Shah do is plan elections. There is enough evidence in the public domain to suggest that after these kind of riots and genocide only one political party gains... They have stalled Parliament because they don't want to answer hard questions," he alleged.

Comparing the Delhi violence with the genocide in Nazi Germany, O' Brien said, "Genocide is a process, even at Nazi time it didn't start with gas chambers. It started with slogans spreading hate and bigotry. Then genocide happened."

He also said that the last time a notice of an opposition member to discuss issues was accepted was in November 2016.