Lok Sabha suspends TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee for rest of Monsoon Session over remarks against women MPs

New Delhi, July 22: The Lok Sabha on Wednesday suspended Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Kalyan Banerjee for the remainder of the Monsoon Session after he was accused of using 'unsavoury' language against women Members of Parliament during a heated exchange inside the Lower House chamber. 

The suspension came soon after the House reconvened at 2 pm following its second adjournment of the day.

Presiding officer Krishna Prasad Tenneti informed members that a complaint had been submitted to Speaker Om Birla alleging that Banerjee's remarks towards women MPs had hurt the dignity of the House.

Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal then moved a resolution seeking Banerjee's suspension for the rest of the session, which concludes on August 13.

The motion was passed by a voice vote amid loud sloganeering by opposition members protesting over the NEET paper leak and other issues.

Following the adoption of the resolution, Tenneti directed Banerjee to leave the precincts of the Lok Sabha. The House was later adjourned for the day as opposition protests continued.

The controversy stemmed from an altercation that took place earlier on Wednesday after the House had been adjourned amid opposition protests. Banerjee was involved in a heated exchange with MPs from the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI), including Mitali Bagh, Shatabdi Roy and Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar, all of whom were formerly associated with the TMC.

The exact trigger for the confrontation remains unclear. Opposition MPs intervened in an attempt to calm the situation before Banerjee left the chamber. Subsequently, Bagh, Dastidar and other NCPI members met Speaker Om Birla to raise the matter.

The incident comes amid continuing political tensions in West Bengal after 20 TMC MPs defected to the NCPI following the party's Assembly election defeat. The rebel MPs now sit separately in the Lok Sabha and have pledged support to the NDA government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.