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 Chandigarh: The Haryana Vidhan Sabha witnessed high drama on Thursday after nine Congress MLAs were named and briefly suspended by Speaker Harvinder Singh Kalyan for creating a ruckus and rushing into the Well of the House during a debate marking 150 years of the national song Vande Mataram. Four of the legislators had to be physically escorted out by marshals after they resisted the Speaker’s orders.

The disruption erupted after Congress members objected to remarks made by Transport Minister Anil Vij and later by Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini. The flashpoint came when Saini accused former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru and the Congress of having “fragmented” Vande Mataram by yielding to the Muslim League during the freedom movement.

Leader of Opposition Bhupinder Singh Hooda objected strongly, saying, “There should be no insult to the national song.” As Congress MLAs raised slogans and rushed to the Well, the Speaker repeatedly warned them not to disrupt proceedings.

“Those who have been named must leave the House. If they don’t, marshals will take them out,” Speaker Kalyan ordered. The MLAs continued sloganeering, shouting “Inquilab Zindabad,” prompting the Speaker to direct marshals to remove them, stating that the House could not function amid such disorder.

After the Chief Minister concluded his speech, the Speaker reiterated that none of the nine named members should remain inside. Hooda sought to intervene, offering to persuade the MLAs to leave himself, but insisted that the provocation stemmed from unnecessary references to personalities “not connected to the resolution.”

Later, Hooda urged the Speaker to delete names of individuals “who are not members of the House” from the resolution, saying, “Vande Mataram belongs to all of us. But such references should be removed in consultation.”

The Speaker countered that storming the Well had become a habit and could not be tolerated. Tensions escalated briefly when Education Minister Mahipal Danda defended the Chief Minister, saying historical facts had merely been placed on record, while Minister Krishan Bedi alleged that Congress MLAs had misbehaved with marshals in a “planned” manner.

Chief Minister Saini maintained that his speech contained nothing unparliamentary and reiterated that he had only spoken of historical facts. In a conciliatory move, he requested the Speaker to recall the suspended legislators.

Following slogans of Vande Mataram raised by both the Treasury benches and the Opposition, the Speaker agreed to allow the Congress MLAs to return, bringing the standoff to a temporary truce.