RS logjam persists, Anti- Hijacking Bill introduced in the din

Admidst the Rajya Sabha proceedings being disrupted for the third day in a row, the government managed to introduce the Anti- Hijacking ( Amendment) bill 2014 in the din.

As the Opposition dug in its heels, that Prime Minister Narendra Modi be present in the house and assure the house that religious conversions would not be allowed, the short duration discussion on Communal Violence slated for the day could not be taken up, as the Opposition demand was not met.

Since the morning the house had to be adjourned several times as the Opposition wanted a response from the government on why despite being present in the Parliament premises the PM would not come to the house. The house had to be finally adjourned for the day with both sides not willing to give in. The Insurance bill listed in the business again could not be taken up. 

In the morning, BSP’s Naresh Agarwal raised a point of order saying, "We read in the papers that some policy decisions were made in the parliamentary party meet of BJP,"  referring to prime minister's warning to party members for not crossing the "Lakshman Rekha" (limits) in their statements. "If his ministers are making some mistake, it is his responsibility to say it in the house," said Agarwal.  

This was refuted by the Leader of the House, Arun Jaitley. The government insisted that they were ready for a discussion, but it was the Opposition which was not ready. 

The Congress party's  V. Hanumatha Rao was even suspended under the rules for a day for disruptive behavior. This was an issue that rankled the Opposition further who requested that he be allowed to come back to the house, which was not conceded by the chair. 

Government ministers disclose that they have already in the past seen the dangers of conceding to Opposition demands.

Last week in the Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti issue despite the PM coming and making a statement before the Rajya Sabha the logjam persisted for three more days. “For us the image of our Prime Minister is more important than these bills, “ claimed the minister. 

It remains to be seen if the government sticks to its stand in the face of the Opposition refusing to buckle down. With crucial bills such as the Insurance & Coal bills lined up, the government has a tall task on its hands.