Odisha Assembly adjourned amid protests over textbooks and MMDR Bill

The opening day of the Odisha Assembly’s Monsoon Session was marked by repeated disruptions as opposition members from the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and Congress protested against the MMDR Bill and alleged errors in school textbooks.

Speaker Surama Padhy adjourned the House twice due to the protests, first until 1:10 pm and later until 4 pm. The session initially included obituary references to former legislators and a moment of silence for those lost in floods in Nepal.

The BJD’s youth and student wings have threatened to protest indefinitely in front of the Assembly, demanding the resignation of School and Mass Education Minister Nityananda Gond. The opposition alleges that textbooks for Classes I to VIII contain serious errors and has accused the government of a ‘Rs 380 crore scam’ regarding textbook publication tenders. Minister Gond stated that the government is taking steps to address the situation.