The Rajya Sabha on Tuesday suspended 19 MPs for a week after unending protests that have hampered transaction of business in the Parliament’s Monsoon session so far. Suspended MPs include TMC members Dola Sen, Sushmita Dev, Nadimul Haque, Mausam Noor, Santunu Sen, Shanta Chhetri, Abir Ranjan Biswas, DMK’s M.H. Abdulla, R. Girirajan, N.R. Elango, S. Kalyanasundaram, M. Shanmugam and Kanimozhi NVN Somu, TRS MPs Damodar Rao and B.L. Yadav, CPI(M)‘s V. Sivadasan and A.A. Rahim, and CPI’s P. Sandosh Kumar.
The Lok Sabha passed the Family Courts (Amendment) Bill, 2022 on Tuesday through a voice vote.
The morning sessions of both Houses were washed out due to sloganeering by the Opposition demanding a debate on GST and inflation.
To get a rundown of the day’s developments in Parliament in your inbox, subscribe to our Parliament Watch newsletter here. You can also read the latest edition of the newsletter here. Also, check out Parliament Watch from The Hindu, a podcast that keeps you updated on every working day of Parliament.
Here are the updates:
Lok Sabha passes the Family Courts (Amendment) Bill, 2022.
The House has been adjourned. Proceedings will now resume on July 27 at 11.00 a.m.
Law and Justice Minister Kiren Rijiju responds to MPs after a discussion on the Family Courts (Amendment) Bill, 2022
This amendment is small but its impact will be big, the minister says.
“In India, a family is a unit as compared to western countries where individual human beings consider themselves a unit,” Mr. Rijiju says.
Independent MP Navneet Rana demands better counselling services for women going through divorce
She asks for family court buildings to be separated from other court premises so that children are not exposed to criminals.
“We are women from the land of Sati and our culture teaches us to spend our entire lives with our husbands. But, some cases are difficult to digest,” she says.
Responding to Dr. Nishikant Dubey’s comments on the increase in the number of divorce cases in India, Ms. Rana says, “Calling it “communist/Congress mindset” is wrong. Our Constitution has given us the freedom to fight for our rights.”
Should we not pay attention to the change in the number of cases since the Supreme Court decriminalised homosexuality: Dr. Nishikant Dubey, BJP MP
The minister calls it an “attack on culture” and says the Parliament is quiet on it.
He also adds that comparing divorce rates in India to that in other countries with lower populations is inaccurate.
During the discussion on the Family Courts (Amendment) Bill, 2022, Dr. Dubey also raises questions on live-in relationships and said that this “Congress/communist thinking” is against Indian and Hindu culture. “Will children born out of live-in relationships, and the disputes in such situations be brought under the purview of this Bill?” the minister asks.
Reconsider suspension of MPs: BSP MP
BSP MP Kunwar Danish Ali from Amroha (U.P.) argued that as the house is debating a bill that talks of settlement, the treasury should reconsider the suspension of the four MPs. According to him, the discussion would’ve been more elaborate with their involvement.
2,544 custodial and encounter deaths reported in FY 2021-22: MoS Home to Lok Sabha
As per information from the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), the number of custodial and encounters deaths registered in the financial year 2021-22 stood at 2,544 — an approximately 31 per cent increase on a year-over-year basis.
No Kashmiri Pandit working under Prime Minister’s Development Package has resigned: MoS Home Affairs to Lok Sabha
Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai stated in a written reply to the lower house that no Kashmiri Pandit working under the Prime Minister’s Development Package has resigned following the recent protests after the killing of a Kashmiri Pandit in the Valley.
He told the house that the Union government has taken several measures for their safety including day and night area domination, proactive operations against terrorists, round-the-clock checking at nakas and patrolling in areas where they reside, among other measures.
Under the Prime Minister’s Development Package, 5,502 Kashmiri Migrants were provided government jobs.
House resumes proceedings, adjourned again till 11 a.m. tomorrow
MP Bhubaneshwar Kalita, who is presiding, requests suspended MPs to withdraw from the House. Opposition MPs chant “We want justice” as suspended members remain in the House. “This is your House,” the Chair says, calling for order in the House.
Amid the continuing protests, the House is adjourned till 11 a.m. tomorrow, that is, July 27, 2022.
Give greater representation to women in family court: BSP MP
BSP MP Ritesh Pandey said the Govt must consider endowing women with greater representation in family court. He argued this was because the domain covered by family courts primarily affects women
MP Jayadev Galla separately argued that councillors should be appointed on a permanent and not temporary basis.
Ensure quicker turnaround at family courts: BJD MP
BJD MP from Cuttack (Odisha) Bhartruhari Mahtab voiced his support for the Bill. He further asked the concerned ministry to look into ensuring a quick turnaround between reconciliation and the final settlement at family courts.
Complete list of the 19 Rajya Sabha MPs suspended for a week
The names and party affiliations of Opposition MPs suspended for a week are:
TMC members Dola Sen, Sushmita Dev, Nadimul Haque, Mausam Noor, Santunu Sen, Shanta Chhetri, Abir Ranjan Biswas, DMK’s M.H. Abdulla, R. Girirajan, N.R. Elango, S. Kalyanasundaram, M. Shanmugam and Kanimozhi NVN Somu, TRS MPs Damodar Rao, Ravichandra Vaddiraju and B.L. Yadav, CPI(M)‘s V. Sivadasan and A.A. Rahim, and CPI’s P. Sandosh Kumar.
Rajya Sabha resumes proceedings, soon adjourned for an hour
House resumes proceedings after 15 minutes. Chair Bhubaneshwar Kalita requests suspended members to withdraw from the house and leave, to allow the house to continue its business. A total of 19 MPs have been suspended.
The House has again been adjourned for an hour, as members continue to raise slogans and assemble in the well of the House.
Lok Sabha takes up Family Courts Amendment Bill 2022 for consideration
Union Minister Kiren Rijiju tables The Family Court (Amendment) Bill, 2022 for consideration and passing. Whilst introducing the bill, he stated that the amendment is minor and it would be ideal if it could passed today itself.
A little background to the Bill: the Family Courts Act empowers State Govts to establish family courts as well as notify dates when the Act will come into force in different states. Himachal Pradesh and Nagaland have set up family courts under the Act, however, they are yet to be accorded the mandatory notification by the Central Government. Thus, its legal validity has been challenged earlier at the Supreme Court. The bill extends this essential legality to the family courts in the two states.
Rajya Sabha suspends MPs for a week, House adjourns for 15 minutes
V Murleedharan, Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs moves the motion and Chair adopts the resolution to suspend MPs disrupting the proceedings of the House from the services of the council for the remainder of the week under Rule 256.
MPs suspended include Mausam Noor, Dola Sen, Shantanu Sen, Sushmita Dev, Nadimul Haque, MM Abdullah, AA Rahim, R Girirajan, Kanimozhi and V Sivadasan, among others
Census 2021 postponed until further notice owing to COVID-19 pandemic: MoS Home Nityanand Rai at Lok Sabha
Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai informed the Lok Sabha in a written reply that Census 2021, and related field activities, had to be postponed owing to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The forthcoming census would be the first digital census, Mr Rai informed. It would entail mobile apps for collection of data and a Census Portal for management and monitoring of various Census related activities have been developed.
Chair and MPs spar about points of order
The Chair questions whether the MPs should come into the well, holding placards. He says that if the disruption persists, he will have to invoke Rule 256 and name the members. Opposition continues to engage in sloganeering. The Chair starts naming members, and requests them to take their seats. “ Mehangai peh charcha ho,” “ GST pe vapas lo” rings through the House as it devolves into chaos.
Lok Sabha resumes proceedings at 2 p.m.
House resumes post adjournment with Rajendra Agrawal in the chair. It is expected to take up matters under Rule 377. Opposition benches reiterate their demand for a discussion on price rise and GST.
Rajya Sabha resumes proceedings at 2 p.m.
Chair invites members to speak about the Weapons of Mass Destruction Amendment Bill, 2022. Members continue to speak about price rise issue.
Rajya Sabha adjourned to 2:00 p.m.
Amid continued sloganeering by Opposition MPs, Rajya Sabha has now been adjourned to 2:00 p.m.
Rahul Gandhi detained by Delhi Police
Ex-Congress chief Rahul Gandhi and other Congress MPs take out protest march from Parliament to Vijay Chowk. The Wayanad MP claims that Opposition MPs want debate on inflation, unemployment however such discussions were not allowed in Parliament. Moreover, he added that Delhi Police were not allowing MPs to sit in protest at Vijay Chowk.
He has now been detained by Delhi police and taken to Parliament Street police station
Questions on GST hike raised
As Opposition MPs continue sloganeering against GST; MPs raise queries on the recent hike on GST on some products. Dy Chair urges Opposition parties to ask their MPs to vacate the well and raise their queries
Rajya Sabha resumes amid ruckus
Proceedings resume in Rajya Sabha after multiple adjournments. Deputy Chair Harivansh Narayan Singh continues taking up issues under Question Hour. Opposition MPs continue sloganeering on GST, hooch tragedy in Gujarat
Suspended Congress MPs hold protest
The four Congress Lok Sabha MPs, who were suspended for the rest of Monsoon Session yesterday, held a protest against their suspension in Parliament premises. The suspended MPs, Manickam Tagore, Ramya Haridas, T N Prathapan and S Jothi Mani alleged that their suspension amounted to "murder of democracy". In a show of solidarity, leaders of Left parties, NCP, DMK and the Congress joined them in the protest and raised slogans against the government.
Lok Sabha adjourned till 2 p.m.
Moments after the Lok Sabha took up matters under Rule 377, Opposition MPs resorted to sloganeering, following which the House was adjourned till 2 p.m.
Rajya Sabha adjourned for 15 minutes
Amid continued sloganeering, Rajya Sabha has been adjourned for 15 minutes
Rajya Sabha resumes question hour
The Upper House resumes proceedings as Opposition MPs display protest placards near Chair. Dy Chairman Harivansh Narayan Singh urges MPs to stop ruckus.
Lok Sabha resumes proceedings
The proceedings have resumed in the Lok Sabha. Mr. Rajendra Agrawal is in the Chair. Question Hour is being taken up
Lok Sabha adjourned till 11.45 a.m.
Amid sloganeering by protesting MPs, Speaker Om Birla adjourned the House till 11.45 a.m. However, before adjourning, he warned MPs not to wave placards or raise slogans in the House. “This is your House, you can debate, or agree or disagree with each other. I don’t want to take action against any MP. But remember the House is not for waving placards. It is for holding discussions on issues of public importance. People of the country don’t want to see you in Parliament with banners and placards,” the Speaker said as he urged Opposition MPs to return to their seats. He also added that questions on GST have been listed in today’s business.
Question Hour in Lok Sabha
Lok Sabha proceedings on Monday resumed with Question Hour on Tuesday. However, protests by Opposition members continued over price rise, with Speaker Om Birla urging members not to disrupt proceedings of the Lower House.
Lok Sabha proceedings begin
The Lok Sabha began proceedings on Tuesday with tributes to soldiers who made the supreme sacrifice in the Kargil war. The day is observed as ‘Kargil Vijay Diwas’ to commemorate India’s victory over Pakistan in the war. Opposition MPs continue sloganeering
Rajya Sabha begins proceedings, adjourned amid ruckus
Rajya Sabha begins proceedings amid sloganeering by Opposition MPs. Chairman Venkaiah Naidu reads out suspension notices. Due to continued ruckus, House is adjourned to 12 noon.
MPs give suspension notices
AAP MP Sanjay Singh and Raghav Chadha, CPI MP Binoy Viswam give Suspension of Business Notice under Rule 267 in Rajya Sabha to discuss the recent GST rate hike, inflation. Meanwhile, Shiv Sena MP Priyanka Chaturvedi seeks suspension of business to discus “misuse of CBI, ED, IT for political agendas”
Legislative business in Rajya Sabha
Bill for consideration and passing:
The Weapons of Mass Destruction and their Delivery Systems (Prohibition of Unlawful Activities) Amendment Bill, 2022.
Legislative business in Lok Sabha
Bill for consideration and passing:
The Family Courts (Amendment) Bill, 2022
Discussion under Rule 193:
The need to promote sports in the country and the steps taken by the government.
Parliament Watch podcast | President’s swearing-in ceremony, suspension of Congress MPs, and more
In this episode of the Parliament Watch podcast, we cover the swearing-in ceremony of Draupadi Murmu as the 15th president, suspension of four Congress members, and multiple adjournments over sloganeering.
Monsoon Session Day 6 recap
In Lok Sabha, Opposition protests over price rise, GST and other issues marred proceedings in Lok Sabha, with four Congress members suspended for the rest of the session. Speaker Om Birla warned the protesting members, including from the Congress, TMC and DMK, asking them not to raise slogans and display placards. He told them that the government was ready to discuss issues raised by them and stressed that people want the House to function. Proceedings were adjourned.
When the session resumed, Rajendra Agarwal, who was chairing the proceedings, asked the opposition members to take note of the warning given by the Speaker. As the protesting opposition members again stalled proceedings, the Chair named Congress MPs Manickam Tagore, TN Prathapan, Jothimani and Ramya Haridas. He said that the members who had been suspended had shown “stubborn behaviour”, “deliberately and continuously disrupted proceedings” and ignored House rules and directions of the Speaker. The House then passed the resolution by a voice vote and suspension of the four MPs was announced.
The Rajya Sabha took up discussion on a bill on the weapon of mass destruction and their delivery systems, but proceedings were disrupted amid protests and sloganeering.
