Stay alert in proceedings or lose chance to ask question: LS speaker to MPs

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Thursday asked members to be alert during House proceedings or else, he said, they will lose the opportunity to ask supplementary questions during the Question Hour.

Birla said this after Shiromani Akali Dal MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal was unable to respond to the speaker's call on time.

During the Question Hour, a question posed by Badal related to Punjab was listed in the agenda for discussion.

When Birla took Badal's name for a few times, she failed to respond in time as she was apparently busy talking to a fellow member.

At this, the speaker decided to move on to the next question.

Soon after, the Shiromani Akali Dal MP responded and urged the speaker to allow her to raise the issue.

"I have called your name thrice. But you were busy in talking. You have to be alert when your question is listed. I want to tell all Honourable members that if you don't pay attention to the proceedings, you will not get the chance to raise issues," Birla said.

The spea