Government and opposition continue to blame: 18 sessions in 24 days, session ends a day earlier

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The winter session of Parliament, which started on a divisive note with the government passing the bill repealing agricultural laws without discussion and suspending 12 Rajya Sabha MPs for their conduct in the previous session, was adjourned sine die Wednesday, one day earlier than expected.

With 18 sittings in 24 days, 11 bills were adopted; 13 bills have been tabled.

Beyond the numbers, the opposition said the session featured a bully government that rushed through bills, failed to provide proper answers to questions and a prime minister that failed to take the penalty of attending Parliament, except for brief customary appearances on the first and last days. A majority of ruling party members, they said, opted out of the House for several days despite a strict directive from the prime minister.

The government criticized the opposition for not having debates in Parliament. “Our first priority was to discuss the issue of rising prices. Unfortunately, when the president and the president gave them a chance, no one was ready. The Minister of Finance was present with his answers, ”Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said on Wednesday.

He said the government was willing to hold discussions on each issue. “The Prime Minister suggested that the government examine the issues raised by members during Zero Hour and that there be action on them. But the disturbances have not stopped. It’s not good for democracy, ”Joshi said.

Asked about the opposition’s claim that the bills were passed without debate, Joshi said, “This is a baseless allegation. The opposition should have let the House function.

ExplainedDelay of disruption in the upper house

The productivity of Rajya Sabha was recorded at 48% in the winter session. According to the data, 60.60% of the time spent on Question Time was wasted due to disruptions. Out of a total scheduled sitting time of 95 hours and 6 minutes, the House only adjourned 45 hours 34 minutes. A total of 49 hours and 32 minutes was lost due to disruptions and postponements.

In Rajya Sabha, the picture was darker. With the armed opposition against “the unjustified (and) anti-democratic suspension of 12 deputies in violation of the rules of procedure”, the productivity of the Rajya Sabha was recorded at 48% during the winter session. According to the data, 60.60% of the time spent on Question Time was wasted due to disruptions. Out of a total scheduled sitting time of 95 hours and 6 minutes, the House only adjourned 45 hours 34 minutes. A total of 49 hours and 32 minutes was lost due to disruptions and postponements.

Expressing his displeasure at the waste of time, Rajya Sabha Chairman, Mr. Venkaiah Naidu, said: “I am not happy to share with you that the House has performed well below its potential. I urge all of you to reflect and introspect, collectively and individually, if this session could have been different and better. I don’t want to dwell on how this session unfolded, because that would lead me to have a very critical look.

With the Lok Sabha running for more days without a break, President Om Birla said the president has tried to maintain a balance. “While 100 members of the ruling party had the opportunity to ask questions, 158 opposition members had the chance; 324 opposition MPs were allowed to mention Zero Hour versus 239 ruling MPs, ”Birla told media.

In total, he said, “99 members participated in the 12 hour and 26 minute discussion on Covid-19. Sixty-one members participated in the short discussion on climate change.

While criticizing the government for not sending bills back to parliamentary committees for review, the opposition managed to send several bills to House committees. The Biodiversity Bill (Amendment) was referred to the joint committees of the two chambers; The National Anti-Doping Bill, the Bill to Amend the Wildlife Protection Bill, Certified Public Accountants, Cost and Labor Accountants, and the Corporate Secretaries Bill (Amendment) , the Prohibition of Child Marriage (Amendment) Bill and the Mediation Bill have been sent to the standing committees for detailed discussions.

Although it has been listed for this session, the government has not introduced a key bill – the Cryptocurrency and Official Digital Currency Regulation Bill, which seeks to ban all crypto private currencies, while authorizing an official digital currency by RBI – during this session. . “There is a process to introduce the bill…. We are working on it; it will take time, ”said Joshi.

The ministers stressed that the opposition did not play a “constructive role” and “did not want to discuss any issue in detail”, and instead disrupted the debate. According to a Union minister, the opposition “has missed every opportunity to confront the government; had no strategy or unity between them ”. This, the minister said, has given the government the space to do what it wants.

The session also saw opposition MPs repeatedly complaining about “unsatisfactory responses” from the treasury banks.

Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, Deputy Leader Gaurav Gogoi and MPs such as Manish Tewari and Hibi Eden, TR Baalu ​​from DMK, Dayanidhi Maran and M Kanimozhi, Danes Ali and Ritesh Pandey from BSP were among those heard complaining to the House that ministers’ responses were not appropriate and direct during Question Time.

Kanimozhi, who previously questioned the government for giving similar answers to her question about the fate of the women’s reserve bill since 2014, criticized the government on Tuesday for trying to push forward all bills except the one. – here without consulting the stakeholders or the States.

But according to the Treasury banks, the opposition’s lack of strategy was a major problem during this session. “The opposition missed many opportunities. For example, the discussion on the bill extending the mandate of the director of the CBI was scheduled for four and a half hours, but the opposition did not take advantage of this opportunity, ”said a minister. “They went out and didn’t bother to come back. While in opposition, we (BJP) took every opportunity to kick the government out. “

The low participation of members of the ruling party in the Chamber was noted. Earlier this week, Lok Sabha was unable to retrieve all of the starred questions listed for oral responses, as MPs listed against 14 oral questions were not present – and nine of them were from the BJP. Chief Party Whip Rakesh Singh, who was not himself in the House to ask his question, later told The Indian Express that the party had taken the issue “seriously” and “was working on it. for members to attend the Chamber. regularly.”

Singh said many party MPs are busy with “election preparations” in five states heading to the polls next year.

During the session, 13 bills (12 in Lok Sabha and one in Rajya Sabha) were introduced. Eleven bills were passed by both houses, including an appropriation bill relating to additional grant requests for the year. Bills include the Farm Repeal Bill, 2021; Dam Safety Bill; Assisted Reproductive Technologies Bill (Regulations); Draft law on surrogacy (regulation); High Court and Supreme Court Judges Amendment Bill (Salaries and Conditions of Service); Delhi Special Police Establishment Bill (Amendment); Bill on the Central Vigilance Commission (amendment); and the Election Laws Bill (Amendment).

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