The Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha were adjourned sine die a day in advance after what is being termed as the frostiest winter session of relations between treasury and Opposition benches in India’s history. The session saw a security breach in the Lok Sabha, the suspension of 146 MPs, and the disqualification of Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Mohua Moitra from the Lok Sabha.
The session, held against the backdrop of the results of the Assembly elections in five States, with the BJP winning the three Hindi-speaking States of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Chhattisgarh; the Congress winning Telangana; and the Zoram People’s Movement (ZPM) winning Mizoram, was expected to be stormy, with Ms. Moitra’s disqualification on December 8, following the adoption of a report by the Ethics Committee of the Lok Sabha.
But barely had the sparks dimmed that the Lok Sabha witnessed a security breach, with two persons entering and setting off coloured gas cannisters on December 13, 22 years to the day terrorists had attacked the old Parliament House. While the incident fortunately did not lead to any casualties, Speaker Om Birla did not agree to the Opposition’s demand for a statement by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and as Opposition MPs protested, carrying placards into the Well of the House, a series of suspensions began, with several MPs referred to the Privileges Committee.
While Mr. Birla, in a letter to the MPs, said that the suspensions were the result of placards being carried, and “unruly” behaviour, the protests continued, as did the suspensions. In the end, since last Thursday, 147 MPs have been suspended from both Houses, with three of them suspended for the duration of the session. This saw 99 out of the 139 INDIA bloc MPs suspended in the Lok Sabha, and 46 out of 97 of them suspended in the Rajya Sabha. Among those suspended is Danish Ali of the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), which is not officially with the INDIA bloc; Mr. Ali had recently been suspended from his own party.
The Opposition’s protests continued outside the House, with a controversy erupting over the mimicry of Vice President Jagdeep Dhankar by TMC MP Kalyan Banerjee.
A protest march by all suspended MPs also took place outside Parliament on the last day of the session, with Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge leading it.
In his valedictory remarks, Mr. Birla spoke of all of this, but also said that the Lok Sabha had recorded 74% productivity in the winter session over 14 sittings, and that the House had worked for 61 hours and 50 minutes.
He said a total of 18 bills, including the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita 2023, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha (Second) Sanhita, and the Bharatiya Sakshya (Second) Sanhita — to replace the Indian Penal Code, the Code of Criminal Procedure, the Indian Evidence Act, respectively — were passed in the Lok Sabha. The legislation will result in a massive change in the legal system of the country. The Bills were also passed in the Rajya Sabha on Thursday.
The contentious Telecommunications Bill, which provides for the government to temporarily take control of telecom services in the interest of national security, and provides a non-auction route for the allocation of satellite spectrum, was passed by both Houses, as was the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Bill that seeks to establish a mechanism to appoint the Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners.
Mr. Birla said that 55 starred questions had been answered orally during the Session, and a total number of 265 matters were taken up under Rule 377. As many as 1,930 papers were laid on the Table of the House, the Speaker added.
Mr. Dhankhar said in his valedictory remarks in the Rajya Sabha that 17 Bills had been passed during the session, and the three Bills on the criminal justice system had unshackled the colonial legacy of criminal jurisprudence, which was hurtful to the citizens of this country and favoured alien rulers.
The Upper House sat for 65 hours over 14 sittings and addressed over 2,300 questions. Over 4,300 papers were laid on the Table of the House. “I am pained to state that nearly 22 hours were lost due to avoidable disruptions adversely impacting our overall productivity that finally stood at 79%. Weaponising disruptions and disturbance as a political strategy doesn’t resonate with our constitutional obligation of keeping the interest of people at large above any other political considerations,” Mr. Dhankhar said.
Wishing every member a merry Christmas and a happy new year, Mr. Dhankhar said he was not alone in expecting 2024 would be a different year that would “contribute wholesomely for the prosperity of Bharat”, and he hoped that the Upper House would play a constructive role in delivering it.
