Parliament remained paralysed for the eighth consecutive sitting on July 31, with Rajya Sabha witnessing an aggressive push from the government to hold a short-duration discussion on Manipur, and the Opposition demanding a more expansive debate suspending all business. In Lok Sabha, where the Opposition is awaiting a debate on a no-confidence motion that has been admitted, disruptions continued as well.
In the Upper House, the government made at least two failed attempts to hold a debate on Manipur under the lesser Rule 176 for a short-duration discussion. The morning session saw two adjournments. After the papers were laid, Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar said he received 65 notices under Rule 267 and asked whether he should read out all of them. Union Minister and Leader of the House Piyush Goyal rose from his seat and said, “They are trying to mock the Parliamentary process. They are trying to misuse the liberty given to all the members. This is clearly reflective of their mentality.”
Also read: Parliament Monsoon Session updates | July 31, 2023
Asserting that the government was ready for a discussion on the Manipur issue at 2 p.m., Mr. Goyal said the Centre had agreed to a discussion in the all-party meeting and the debate could have happened on the first day of the Monsoon Session itself. But Mr. Kharge insisted that it should only be under Rule 267, which allows for more time since it requires suspension of day’s business.
“We have demanded discussion under Rule 267. Our members have visited Manipur. Manipur is burning… We want [a discussion] under Rule 267,” Mr. Kharge said. Amidst din, the House was adjourned till 12 noon. When it reassembled, Mr. Dhankhar allowed Mr. Kharge to speak but ruling party members shouted him out, forcing the Chair to adjourn till 2 p.m.
When the House reconvened, similar scenes were repeated, leading to another adjournment till 3:30 p.m. The government then made another attempt to hold the debate under Rule 176. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said if the Opposition is serious about the issues related to Manipur and does not want to indulge in politics, they should allow the discussion to start. However, the Opposition members continued shouting slogans, following which the Chairman adjourned the House till Tuesday.
Enraged Opposition members addressing the media outside the Parliament said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should stop “insulting” the House and take part in the proceedings. Explaining their stance on why they are rejecting the government’s offer to hold a discussion under Rule 176, they said the gravity of the issue dictates that a more expansive discussion is held.
Trinamool Congress leader Derek O’Brien said the Prime Minister has not come to Parliament for even 20 seconds in eight days of the Monsoon Session so far. “We want to discuss Manipur under an emergency rule, not the ‘toast and butter’ Rule of 176. A one-an-a-half hour or two-hour discussion is not done. That is ‘toast and butter’ Rule, we want a ‘full meal’ discussion on Manipur,” he said.
Congress general secretary and its Rajya Sabha chief whip Jairam Ramesh tweeted, “Extraordinary happenings in Rajya Sabha this afternoon. Leader of the Opposition, Mallikarjun Kharge-ji, is given permission to speak by the Chair. He tries to speak. All BJP MPs are instigated to prevent him from speaking. He tries to but his voice is drowned out in the din created by the Treasury benches. The House gets adjourned!”
The Lok Sabha too witnessed multiple disruptions over the Opposition’s insistence that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should make a statement on Manipur in Parliament. Between the two disruptions, in the post-lunch session, the Lower House passed the Cinematograph Amendment Bill, 2023, that seeks to curb film piracy.
When the House met at 11 a.m., Speaker Om Birla announced that a parliamentary delegation had come from Malawi and they are watching the proceedings of the House. But as soon as Mr. Birla’s speech got over, Opposition members were on their feet and trooped into the Well of the House with placards and raised slogans against the government. Though the Speaker tried to run the Question Hour for about 15 minutes, he eventually adjourned the House until 2 p.m.
