The West Bengal Assembly’s Budget Session witnessed high drama on Tuesday as BJP MLAs, led by Leader of Opposition Suvendu Adhikari staged a walkout and protested against Speaker Biman Banerjee’s decision to reject their adjournment motion on alleged communal tensions in the state.

The uproar intensified when BJP legislators tore Assembly documents inside the House, prompting the Speaker to bar them from receiving any further official papers. The controversy erupted when the BJP moved an adjournment motion in the Assembly, seeking a discussion on alleged communal disturbances in West Bengal.

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Speaker Biman Banerjee refused to accept the motion, citing that the issue had already been debated earlier and there was no need for a second discussion. This led to an uproar from BJP legislators, who began shouting slogans and tearing official papers inside the House. In response, the Speaker ordered that BJP MLAs would no longer be given any Assembly documents. Enraged by the decision, BJP MLAs, including Suvendu Adhikari, staged a walkout and later held a protest outside the Assembly premises.

Addressing the media, Mr Adhikari lashed out at the Speaker, calling his decision “unconstitutional and unprecedented.” He declared: “This is a rare instance in India’s constitutional history where opposition MLAs have been denied official Assembly documents. But this won’t stop us. Every day, we will bring our own paper, and if necessary, we will tear it inside the Assembly in protest.” He also warned of intensified protests in the coming days.

The tension between the ruling Trinamul Congress (TMC) and the BJP had already escalated on Monday when BJP MLAs Shankar Ghosh and Manoj Oraon were forcibly removed from the House by marshals for speaking despite warnings from the Speaker. In protest, BJP MLA Deepak Barman tore Assembly documents, leading to his suspension for the day.

This is not the first time such a confrontation has occurred during the Budget Session. In February, during the first phase of the session, Suvendu Adhikari and three other BJP MLAs, Agnimitra Paul, Bishwanath Karak, and Bankim Ghosh, were suspended after they staged a protest and tore papers inside the House. Adhikari was handed a 30-day suspension at the time.

With BJP warning of intensified protests, the Assembly session is expected to remain stormy in the coming days.