Bhopal, February 19 The Madhya Pradesh assembly witnessed heated scenes and four successive adjournments on Thursday as the opposition Congress launched a scathing attack on the Mohan Yadav-led government over the contaminated water crisis in Indore.
While the Congress claimed that 35 people have died, labeling it "murder by the system", the state government officially revised its figure upward to 22 deaths – sharply contradicting its own "death audit" report submitted to the High Court last month, which cited only 16 fatalities.
The Congress, which has 64 MLAs in the 230-member House, only relented after Speaker Narendra Singh Tomar assured to hold a discussion on the issue on Friday.
The House functioned smoothly for a while during the Question Hour on Thursday. But as soon as the issue of deaths due to the waterborne disease outbreak in Indore came up, the Congress demanded the resignation of two ministers and the Indore mayor.
Leader of the Opposition Umang Singhar termed the incident a failure of the system and demanded the resignation of Urban Development Minister Kailash Vijayvargiya and Health Minister Rajendra Shukla.
He claimed that while 35 people have died in Indore due to the contaminated water, the ministers responsible were present in the House.
"These are not deaths, but murders, and the system is responsible for the murder of 35 people in Bhagirathpura. On moral grounds, these ministers should resign," he said.
Congress members began creating a ruckus and shouting slogans demanding the ministers' resignations.
Amid the din, health minister Shukla admitted that 22 people have died in Indore due to water contamination.
"A total of 22 deaths have been officially confirmed due to acute diarrhoea since December 21, 2025," he said, adding that a compensation of Rs 2 lakh each had been paid to the kin of the deceased.
The LoP described the compensation of Rs 2 lakh each given to the deceased as "inadequate" and demanded that the amount be increased to at least Rs 4 lakh.
He told the assembly members that a total of 459 people were hospitalised, and some of them are still undergoing treatment.
Intervening in the heated debate, Chief Minister Mohan Yadav said that the matter should remain "above politics" and informed the House that a senior administrative officer found guilty of negligence has already been suspended.
He said that as far as compensation is concerned, the amount could even be increased to Rs 4 lakh or Rs 5 lakh.
Despite this, the Congress members continued to protest, forcing Tomar to adjourn the House for 10 minutes.
When the proceedings of the House resumed, the opposition members sat near the Speaker's podium and began shouting slogans again.
Tomar repeatedly requested the agitating members to return to their seats and allow the business of the House to be transacted. However, as the uproar continued, he adjourned the House till 2 pm.
But after the House reassembled, the situation remained unchanged as the Congress members continued to target the government. As a result, the House was adjourned twice for 15 minutes each time.
When the business resumed, Singhar demanded that the speaker accept the notice of adjournment motion given by the opposition on this issue and hold a discussion.
Tomar said he had promised the House that he would provide an opportunity for discussion.
"I stand by my words. I will give you a chance tomorrow," he said.
The opposition members relented after his assurance.