The Trinamool’s Rajya Sabha deputy leader Sagarika Ghose Thursday asked why the Narendra Modi government was dilly-dallying over a discussion on the Electors Photo Identity Cards (EPIC) on the floor of the House.

“We want to ask- when you have already signalled your willingness to have a discussion on duplicate voters’ identity cards, why is it not being allowed? Duplicate card goes to the very heart of our electoral democracy. It is about a clean and fair electoral roll and therefore, a free and fair poll,” Ghose said.

The Rajya Sabha was adjourned after SP, Congress, and several other opposition parties staged a walkout from the Rajya Sabha during the morning session on Thursday protesting Chair's decision to not allow discussion on the alleged threat and attempt to attack the residence of a sitting MP at Agra.

Since the budget session resumed earlier this month, the Trinamool Congress has repeatedly demanded a discussion on the House over the duplicate voters’ identity cards that the party supremo and Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee had flagged during a party meeting last month.

The Trinamool leaders were joined by other opposition parties including the Congress and the BJD which had in the past bailed out the Narendra Modi government on crucial bills.

“For the last few days, we have been regularly giving notices and demanding a discussion in Parliament on the issue of duplicate EPIC cards. The government has assured us that they will allow a discussion. The chairman himself said he will consider a discussion. But, every day under some pretext or the other, the discussion on duplicate EPIC cards is not being allowed,” Ghose said.

Ghose said the issue concerned every voter in the country.

“It concerns every voter, every citizen. It concerns the entire nation. All Opposition parties are on board. We all want a discussion on duplicate EPIC cards but for some pretext or the other, this discussion is not being allowed. We are continuing to demand it and we will continue to demand it,” she said.