Odisha Assembly Adjourned Amid MMDR Protest

• Odisha Assembly disrupted for the fifth consecutive working day over MMDR Act.
• BJD and Congress MLAs demanded withdrawal of the amended mining law.
• BJD legislators walked out and joined a protest rally outside the Assembly.
• The House was adjourned till 4 pm amid continued opposition protests.

GG News Bureau
Bhubaneswar, 28th Sept: The Odisha Assembly witnessed noisy scenes for the fifth consecutive working day on Monday as opposition Biju Janata Dal (BJD) and Congress MLAs protested against the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Act, 2026, forcing repeated adjournments of the House. The proceedings were eventually adjourned till 4 pm.

As soon as the House assembled for Question Hour at 10.30 am, opposition legislators holding placards and wearing black scarves entered the well and raised slogans against the amended mining law.

The opposition parties described the legislation as “anti-Odisha” and “anti-tribal” and demanded its repeal.

Speaker Surama Padhy appealed to the protesting members to return to their seats and allow the proceedings to continue. However, the protests intensified after Parliamentary Affairs Minister Mukesh Mahaling was allowed to respond to a question.

Some protesting legislators were seen standing on the reporters’ table, while others raised slogans near the Speaker’s podium. With the situation showing no signs of easing, Padhy adjourned the House till 11.30 am after only about seven minutes of functioning.

The day’s scheduled business included questions relating to the Health and Family Welfare, Home, Parliamentary Affairs, Finance, General Administration and Public Grievances, and Electronics and Information Technology departments.

When the House reconvened at 11.30 am, similar scenes continued. The Speaker, however, allowed Zero Hour discussions to proceed amid the opposition protest in the well.

Later, BJD legislators staged a walkout and joined the party’s protest rally outside the Assembly, where the party demanded withdrawal of the MMDR Amendment Act.

Congress MLAs, meanwhile, continued their protest inside the well as the Speaker conducted Zero Hour proceedings amid the din.

As the disruption continued, the Speaker adjourned the House till 4 pm after around half an hour of functioning. The protests have disrupted proceedings since the beginning of the monsoon session on September 22.

The MMDR Amendment Act has emerged as a major point of contention between the BJP-led government and the opposition during the ongoing Assembly session.

Opposition parties have claimed that Odisha could lose more than Rs 1 lakh crore in revenue if the amended law is implemented in the state. The ruling BJP has rejected the claim and maintained that Odisha would instead benefit from the new mining framework.

However, Odisha Steel and Mines Minister B B Jena recently told the Assembly that the state government had not yet assessed whether Odisha would gain or lose financially because of the new legislation. He assured the House that the interests of the state would be protected.

The amendment restricts state governments from imposing specified taxes, cess or other levies on mineral rights and mineral-bearing lands except in accordance with conditions or restrictions prescribed by the Centre.

BJD Opposition chief whip Pramila Mallik criticised the BJP government and said her party would continue its agitation demanding withdrawal of the legislation.

“We will protect the interests of the state and not listen to the ‘fake glorification’ by the BJP government. The Centre has snatched the state’s rights over mineral land through this new law,” Mallik said.

Senior Congress MLA Taraprasad Bahinipati said his party had opposed the legislation both inside and outside the Assembly.

He demanded an assurance from Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi that the legislation would not cause financial losses to Odisha or affect the state’s rights over mineral-bearing lands. He also called for an Assembly resolution opposing implementation of the amended MMDR law in Odisha.

The BJD also held a protest rally in Bhubaneswar on Monday, with party president and Leader of Opposition Naveen Patnaik participating in the demonstration and calling for withdrawal of the legislation.

The Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, introduced in the Lok Sabha on August 10, seeks to amend the MMDR Act, 1957. Among its provisions, it gives the Centre power to regulate mineral-bearing lands and restricts states from imposing specified levies on mineral rights and mineral-bearing land except under conditions prescribed by the central government.

The legislation has also raised constitutional questions. PRS Legislative Research has noted that land is a State List subject and that the Supreme Court’s 2024 ruling held that states can tax mineral-bearing land under their taxation powers. PRS has flagged questions regarding Parliament’s legislative competence and the Bill’s retrospective treatment of certain unpaid state levies.

The political standoff between the ruling BJP and opposition BJD and Congress is expected to continue as the Assembly session progresses.