Bhubaneswar, March 12: The Odisha Assembly on Thursday was repeatedly disrupted by protests from BJD and Congress members over the alleged shortage of cooking gas and black marketing of LPG cylinders, leading to the adjournment of the House till 4 pm.

The issue surfaced soon after the Assembly convened for Question Hour at 10.30 am. Congress legislators entered the well of the House, raising slogans and displaying placards demanding a rollback of the recent hike in LPG cylinder prices. Their protest near the Speaker’s podium brought proceedings to a halt.

Members of the BJD also backed the issue raised by the Congress, alleging black marketing of cooking gas while protesting from their seats.

Speaker Surama Padhy appealed to the members to return to their seats and allow the Question Hour to proceed. However, as the opposition ignored her request, she first adjourned the House till 11.30 am.

When the Assembly reconvened, similar scenes unfolded, prompting the Speaker to adjourn the proceedings again—first till 12.10 pm and later till 4 pm.

The opposition accused the BJP government of failing to regulate cooking gas supply and prevent black marketing of LPG cylinders.

Opposition chief whip Pramila Mallik alleged that a 14-kg LPG cylinder was being sold for more than Rs 1,500 in the market due to the government’s failure to ensure proper distribution.

Responding to the protests, BJP legislator Irasis Acharya condemned the repeated interruptions and questioned the motives of Congress members, accusing the BJD of supporting them.

Another BJP MLA, Ashok Mohanty, rejected the allegations and maintained that there was no shortage of LPG in Odisha.