Lok Sabha discusses, for a change

Debates India's Constitution, on anniversary of its adoption; tenor indicates a difficult winter session; PM to reply tomorrow

On Thursday, the Lok Sabha accomplished something that was a rarity during the earlier, monsoon session.

On the first day of Parliament's winter session, it discussed without any adjournments the non-contentious issue of the contribution of B R Ambedkar to the framing of the Constitution, on the occasion of the adoption of the basic law in 1949.

There was, however, enough to indicate from the discussion that the winter session would be bitterly contested on ideological lines between the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government and the opposition.

The Rajya Sabha was adjourned for the day because of the death of a member. Discussions in the Lok Sabha were initiated by the Speaker, Sumitra Mahajan. Opening the debate for the government, home minister Rajnath Singh raised the hackles of opposition members when he, in an apparent reference to actor Aamir Khan, said Ambedkar faced insult and discrimination but never thought of leaving India.

It drew a sharp response from Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge, who sought to make a distinction between Aryans, who he said have come from outside, and Dravidians. “We (the Dravidians) are here for 5,000 years and have been suffering attacks. And, we will be here,” Kharge, from Karnataka, said.

Opposition members also objected to the home minister pointing out how Ambedkar didn’t want to include the words ‘socialism’ and ‘secularism’, incorporated in the Preamble through the 42nd amendment during the Emergency in 1976. Rajnath Singh said ‘secularism’ had become the most misused word, which had led to tensions in society. He said the misuse should come to an end. He said the translation of ‘secularism’ in Hindi as ‘dharma nirpekshata’ was also not acceptable and should be changed to ‘panth nirpekshata’.

Singh also defended caste-based reservations as a constitutional provision, possibly a reference to criticism of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat calling for a review of the policy.

The home minister said some of the government’s policies like ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao’ and the Jan-Dhan Yojana showed its commitment to the Constitution. Prime Minister Narendra Modi sat through the entire day’s debate and is to reply on Friday to the debate.

Congress president Sonia Gandhi pointed to her party’s contribution to not only the framing of the Constitution but recognising the ability of Ambedkar, in appointing him to chair the drafting committee. In what seemed an effort to again lay claim to some icons of the party, she recounted the contribution of Jawaharlal Nehru, Rajendra Prasad, Vallabhbhai Patel and Abul Kalam Azad.

She also said the nation shouldn’t forget Ambedkar’s warning that a Constitution can only be as good as the people who implement it. She said the day marked a happy occasion but there were unhappy tidings as well, as there is a deliberate attempt to undermine the core values of the Constitution in recent months by people who “neither have any faith in the Constitution, nor played any part in drafting it”.

Both, the home minister’s as well as her speeches were frequently interrupted by the opposing side.

Trinamool Congress’ Sudip Bandyopadhyay criticised the government for failure to reach out to those actors and intellectuals who have raised the issue of growing intolerance in the country. He requested the PM to speak on the issue, in the country. Biju Janata Dal’s Tathagata Satpathy also questioned efforts to push any majoritarian agenda, including trying to make Hindi the national language. The Shiv Sena's Anandrao Adsul reminded the Congress how they ensured that Ambedkar couldn't get elected to the Lok Sabha.

The discussion is to continue on Friday. It Lok Sabha will take up other issues and legislative business from Monday, while the Rajya Sabha will have a discussion on this during Friday and Monday.