Shah’s influence grows in House

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief Amit Shah was elected to the Rajya Sabha in August 2017. The truncated Winter Session was both short and frequently disrupted in the Rajya Sabha. Shah had planned to deliver his maiden speech, but couldn’t because of the disruptions. However, during the ongoing Budget session of Parliament, Shah has taken to exert his authority on the proceedings of the House. Shah delivered his maiden speech when he took part in the debate on the motion of thanks to the President’s Address. His influence is evident in other ways as well. The Leader of the House is Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, and generally responsible for conducting his party’s floor strategy, in consultation with Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar and Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Vijay Goel. However, the last few days of proceedings made it evident that Goel is now taking instructions from Shah, and not Jaitley.