India, March 25 -- The Lok Sabha witnessed a heated exchange and was briefly adjourned during Question Hour on Tuesday after members of Parliament from the opposition camp protested against the Union government over the alleged delay in releasing pending central funds, including those for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA).

The uproar intensified after Union minister of state for rural development Chandra Sekhar Pemmasani, while addressing the issue, cited alleged financial misappropriation by the West Bengal government.

Trinamool Congress MP Bapi Haldar had sought a timeline for the release of MGNREGA dues to states, and responding to the query, Pemmasani claimed said, "Multiple things went wrong. Fund...