Pandemonium prevailed in Orissa Legislative Assembly on Wednesday as the Opposition Congress members stormed into the well of the House demanding resignation of two ministers — Mr Badrinarayan Patra and Mr Pratap Jena — for their alleged role in the Rs 125-crore coal scam. The two ministers had facilitated diversion of subsidised coal to some fake companies during their stints in the Orissa Small-scale Industries Corporation (OSIC).
Both Mr Patra and Mr Jena in the past served as the chairman of the OSIC at different periods between 200 and 2005.
As soon as the Assembly Session started, Leader of the Opposition Bhupinder Singh stood up and urged Speaker Pradip Kumar Amat to suspend the regular business of the House to debate the coal scam.
The Speaker, instead of obliging Mr Singh, wanted to conducted the question hour business.
As the revenue minister Suryanarayan Patra rose to reply to a question, the Congress members protested it and trouped into the well, forcing the Speaker to adjourn the House till 11.30 pm. When the reassembled, the Congress members again raised the coal scam and demanded special discussion on the issue.