Turkish MP stages pepper spray protest in Parliament

ISTANBUL

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Republican People’s Party's (CHP) deputy Mevlüt Aslanoğlu has released “pepper spray” in Parliament’s Planning and Budget Commission as a protest shortly before the opening of a discussion on the 2013 budget.
 
Aslanoğlu released deodorant from a canister that was marked with the words "pepper spray."
 
Several journalists and deputies in the hall suffered from coughing fits because of the gas.
 
A group of CHP deputies also unfurled a banner protesting the use of pepper spray as members of the Justice and Development Party (AKP) shouted at Aslanoğlu to stop the protest.
 
Following the incidents, Interior Minister İdris Naim Şahin entered the hall with his bodyguards, shaking hands with each deputy before taking his place.
 
Tensions calmed down after Şahin entered.