Govt, Opposition refuse to budge as barred MPs continue stir

Impasse between Oppn, government over suspension of 12 MPs from RS continues as neither side concedes any space

The impasse between the Opposition and the government in the Rajya Sabha (RS) over the suspension of 12 RS Members of Parliament (MPs) showed no signs of abating. Barring initial clashes, the Lok Sabha (LS) met to pass the Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Bill, even as the Opposition sought to correct the impression it was not ready to let Parliament function.

However, in the Upper House, neither side is budging an inch. RS Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu refused to revoke the suspension of MPs unless they ‘showed remorse’, while Leader of Opposition in the RS Mallikarjun Kharge charged that the suspension was illegal and said: “there shall be no apology”.

Ripun Bora, one of the suspended MPs, said: “Opposition MPs are protesting every day and will continue to do so. The suspended MPs are also sitting in protest and will do so every day from 10 am to 5 pm in front of the Gandhi statue (in Parliament).”

He added: “(RS) chairman should explain why we have been suspended as we were raising farmers’ and peoples’ issues, such as price rise and Pegasus snooping allegations. Is that an offence? Should we apologise for it?” 

The MPs demanded that Kharge be allowed to speak on the suspension, while the Jal Shakti Minister moved the Dam Safety Bill for consideration. However, the Chair refused to let him speak, sparking protests from the Opposition. The House was adjourned for the day finally at 3 pm as it was clear no business was going to be transacted.

Opposition leaders told Business Standard that the government has to revoke the suspensions, else RS will not work. The government has to clear two more Ordinances in both Houses. If RS doesn’t work, this will put the Ordinances — including those relating to the term of Central Bureau of Investigation and Enforcement Directorate chiefs — in jeopardy.

Similar scenes were seen in the LS when it started work. Here, it was the Telangana Rashtra Samithi which continued protests after the Food Corporation of India had, a few weeks ago, refused to lift parboiled paddy from farmers in Telangana.

Members shouted slogans and displayed placards over farmer issues in the Well of the House during Question Hour. Speaker Om Birla told protesting members that this was not the right thing to do and underscored the importance of Question Hour. But later, Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya introduced a Bill to amend laws around artificial reproductive technologies, including in-vitro fertilization, with nearly 80 amendments.

The Opposition participated enthusiastically to dispel the impression that it was obstructing the functioning of the House and several amendments were moved by both Trinamool Congress (TMC) leaders as well as Communist Party of India (Marxist) MP N Premachandran. In fact, TMC MP Saugata Roy quipped that instead of so many amendments, the minister would have been better served to bring a new Bill. The Bill was later passed. Zero hour also went off without interruption. Both Opposition and the treasury benches were well-attended.

The Opposition is going to pursue different tactics in the Lower and Upper House at least till the end of the week. RS is unlikely to see any work, while the LS will see disturbance in the morning but will continue business during the rest of the day. Prime Minister Narendra Modi discussed with senior ministers, including Leader of the Upper House Piyush Goyal, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi, and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, how to continue proceedings.