The Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) on Monday launched a sharp attack on the Congress during the winter session of the Haryana Legislative Assembly, questioning the party’s repeated use of walkouts instead of sustained debate inside the House. INLD MLA Arjun Chautala asserted that the true role of the opposition is to hold the government accountable by seeking answers, not by staging protests that disrupt proceedings.
Speaking in the Assembly, Chautala said that opposition politics should focus on questioning the government over failures, corruption, and policy shortcomings. “We don’t need walkouts; we need answers,” he remarked, underlining that abandoning the House does little to serve public interest. His comments came after Congress legislators walked out following the Speaker’s approval of a privilege motion moved by BJP MLA Shakti Rani Sharma against Congress MLA Indu Raj Narwal.
While former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda opposed the privilege motion, Chautala chose to remain in the House and register his objections through debate. He stressed that confronting the government from within the Assembly is more effective than symbolic exits. According to him, repeated walkouts weaken the opposition’s credibility and deny citizens meaningful scrutiny of the ruling party.
Chautala also recalled earlier instances when Congress MLAs walked out, including after a no-confidence motion was defeated. He noted that issues such as law and order, farmers’ demand for a legal guarantee on minimum support price (MSP), and poor road conditions should be raised persistently through discussion rather than protests.
In a separate attack, the INLD leader accused the Congress of hypocrisy on electoral integrity. Referring to allegations of “vote chori” (vote theft), Chautala claimed the Congress would never genuinely support electoral reforms. He cited past controversies and said that despite winning his own election, he voluntarily agreed to VVPAT verification, while alleging that the Congress candidate who raised objections later failed to follow through.
Through its remarks, the INLD made it clear that opposition unity does not mean silent agreement, and that it will continue to publicly challenge Congress when it believes the party falls short of responsible opposition conduct.
