Parliament was adjourned on Friday afternoon as the winter session ended, witnessing repeated disruptions on various issues and a heated debate on the Constitution, which resulted in clashes that left two MPs injured and led to an FIR against the leader. Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi.
Amidst the chaos, Parliament worked for about half of its scheduled time: the Lok Sabha for 52% of its scheduled time and the Rajya Sabha for 39%, according to a report by non-profit PRS Legislative Research on the session.
The question and answer period has also been greatly affected. According to the PRS, question time did not last more than 10 minutes on 15 days out of 19 days in the Rajya Sabha and 12 days out of 20 days in the Lok Sabha.
The 18th Lok Sabha, which was elected in June, has so far passed only one bill, the PRS report said, “the fewest in the last six Lok Sabha terms”. The Bill – Indian Aviation Act, 2024 – was passed by the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha in the winter session in August.
Congress’s Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other Indian Bloc MPs protested against Amit Shah (PTI).
The two bills brought by the government for the implementation of ‘One Nation, One Election’ have been sent to the 39-member parliamentary committee for further investigation.
Here’s a recap:
For four days – during the “debate on the 75-year glorious journey of the Constitution of India” in the Lok Sabha on December 13-14 and the Rajya Sabha on December 16-17 – Parliament went into deliberative mode without a hitch. However, although there was a large degree of agreement on the idea of the constitution, the tone and tenor was intensely angry as the fund and the opposition accused each other of damaging the constitution and insulting BR Ambedkar.
Responding to a two-day debate in the Lok Sabha, Prime Minister Narendra Modi accused the Congress of repeatedly attacking the Constitution and said the Nehru-Gandhi family had committed the “sin” of defaming, damaging and subverting it. He also targeted the Congress saying that it has always opposed reservation and is now playing a “game” to introduce quotas based on religion.
Targeting the BJP, Rahul Gandhi said that VD Savarkar had rejected the Constitution and that Hindutva ideology wanted “the book by which India (Constitution) should be superseded by this book (Manusmriti)”. “And this is about the fight (between the BJP and the opposition),” Gandhi said.
Rahul’s Rajya Sabha counterpart Mallikarjun Kharge also slammed the BJP and the RSS, saying, “RSS leaders opposed the Constitution in 1949 because it was not based on Manusmriti…”
Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman have continued the government’s attack on the Congress.
Responding to a debate in the Rajya Sabha on December 17, Shah said: “Nowadays there is a fashion – Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar … If you chant the name of God this many times, you will be blessed by heaven. In seven births.”
It caused an uproar: Congress protested over the next few days to demand Shah’s resignation, and opposition and ruling MPs clashed on Thursday at Makardwar, the main entrance to Parliament House.
The BJP alleged that MPs Pratap Chandra Sarangi and Mukesh Rajput fell and were injured after Gandhi pushed them, while the Congress, in a letter to Speaker Om Birla, claimed Gandhi was “physically manhandled” by three ruling party MPs. Kharge also wrote a letter to the Speaker demanding a “physical push by BJP MPs” and a probe.
After the clash, both the BJP and the Congress lodged a complaint with the Delhi Police; And an FIR was registered against Gandhi.
Before the debate, the session was largely about disruptions – the opposition had demanded a discussion on Adani’s indictment on bribery charges in the US; And the Treasury attacked Congress over alleged ties to George Soros.
In the first week of the session, which started on November 25, the Congress had asked for a discussion on Adani and the government’s reluctance to accept the dispute ended. It is reflected in the declaration of special discussion on the constitution.
However, a few days later, chaos returned, this time due to a “dangerous triangle” with the BJP targeting Gandhi and Congress, accusing Soros, the global investigative news network OCCRP, and Congress plus Gandhi of trying to “derail India”. A success story under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The session also saw a move by the opposition to impeach Vice President and Rajya Sabha Speaker Jagdeep Dhankhar alleging favoritism. However, it was rejected.
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