Mayawati quits Rajya Sabha after being disallowed to speak on Dalit atrocities

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) Supremo Mayawati on Tuesday resigned from the Rajya Sabha, hours after she claimed she was disallowed from speaking on atrocities against Dalits under the ruling NDA government, reported news agency ANI. She has sent in her resignation to the Vice-President. The former Uttar Pradesh chief minister stormed out of the House earlier today, after Deputy Chairman P J Kurien asked her to conclude her impromptu speech on the anti-Dalit violence in Saharanpur. After exceeding her allotted three minutes, Kurien told her she "cannot monopolise" the floor.

"When I tried speaking about the weaker sections today in the Rajya Sabha, I was not allowed to speak. Why? It's a shame. If I can't speak about our weaker sections in the House then I have no right to stay in the House. This is the reason I have decided to quit from Rajya Sabha, I am not being heard, not allowed to speak," Mayawati had said earlier today.

Mayawati's exit from the House led to sloganeering from Opposition parties, who disrupted the House leading to an adjournment.