Govt blames Oppn for logjam in Parliament as productivity dives in Houses

The government on Thursday blamed the Opposition for the virtual washout of the second half of Parliament's Budget Session, saying the ruling BJP was ready to drop its demand, a likely reference to its insistence on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's apology, if opposition parties reciprocated its gesture on their stand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the Adani issue.

Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Arjun Ram Meghwal told reporters after the session concluded that the government wanted a discussion on the Finance Bill before it was passed.

"We were ready to give up our stand. But they should have also given up their stand. We had a strong stand," he said, without directly referring to the BJP stand.

He noted that Speaker Om Birla had called a meeting to defuse the logjam, but the Opposition stuck to its stand.

Meghwal said the productivity of Lok Sabha was 34 per cent and of Rajya Sabha 24.4 per cent during the session, which had begun on January 31.

Overall six bills were passed by the two Houses while eight were introduced, he added. All the bills, including the Finance Bill, were passed amid a din.

BJP members had been protesting in both Houses over Gandhi's alleged insult of Indian democracy during his recent trip to Britain, a charge rejected by the Congress leader.