Chandigarh, Dec. 20 -- Pandemonium prevailed in the Haryana assembly on Friday shortly after question hour as Congress members trooped into the well of the House, raising slogans and protesting against chief minister Nayab Singh Saini's pointed remarks questioning why CLP leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda had not signed the no-confidence motion against the government. In a surprise intervention, Saini referred to what he described as a "healthy convention" set by the House when he had warmly welcomed Hooda on his elevation as the Leader of the Opposition on the opening day of the winter session on Thursday. Recalling his positive remarks made a day earlier about Hooda's political and administrative experience, the chief minister said the treasury benches' conduct towards the CLP leader had sent out a positive message across the state. "But what surprised me was that after such warmth and a good beginning, the Congress brought a no-confidence motion which does not bear the signature of the Leader of the Opposition. Perhaps Hooda still does not consider himself the LoP," Saini said, triggering an uproar from the opposition benches. Hooda dismissed the chief minister's remarks as unnecessary, but Saini persisted, taking an indirect dig at the Congress in an apparent attempt to highlight the party's internal discord over the former CM's reappointment as the CLP leader. "I did not come across Hooda's signature on the no-confidence motion," Saini reiterated, wondering aloud whether Congress leaders themselves did not consider Hooda their leader. The remarks led to noisy scenes with Congress members rushing to the well of the House and treasury benches retaliating. Speaker Harvinder Kalyan had a tough time restoring order as Hooda lodged a strong protest against the chief minister's comments. At one point, both Hooda and Saini were on their feet, each seeking to speak first, forcing the Speaker to repeatedly appeal for decorum. The Speaker asked the chief minister to wind up his remarks, but as Saini continued to touch upon the issue, Hooda questioned why an irrelevant matter was being raised in the House. "This is unfortunate. They have no business to comment on the Congress," Hooda said. Apparently at the core of CM's floor strategy was to expose the chinks within the Congress by repeatedly stating that on one hand the BJP was warmly reacting to Hooda become the CLP leader after a wait of one year and on the other hand within the Congress there were some unhappy leaders. As tempers flared on both sides, Speaker Kalyan said, "What is happening in the House is not good. The public is watching us." Hooda questioned how the chief minister could raise the issue of signatures after the no-confidence motion had already been admitted by the Speaker. "I had announced in a press conference that we would move a no-confidence motion," he said, urging the Speaker to expunge certain remarks from the proceedings. The Speaker assured him that the plea would be examined. Hooda asked what point the government was trying to make when the motion had been admitted and the debate was scheduled for the second sitting of the House on Friday. The war of words continued, with transport minister Anil Vij also rising to make a point. A visibly upset Vij complained that he was not being allowed to speak. As the Speaker sought to make an important announcement and urged members to close the issue, Vij attempted to persist with the matter, but was stopped by the Chair, which ruled that no further discussion on the no-confidence motion would be allowed at that stage. Eventually, order was restored in the House....