Parliament should be home of healthy debate, not disruption
NEWDELHI: Harivansh, a Janata Dal (United) Rajya Sabha member, was elected deputy chairman of the Upper House on Friday. A former journalist, Harivansh spoke to and about his elevation, the role of Rajya Sabha, and his priorities. Excerpts:
Kumar Uttam Prashant Jha
in keeping with the traditions of the House. You would not have seen me in the Well, make any noise, disrupt proceedings.
When this proposal came my way, I was first apprehensive about whether I would be able to meet this responsibility in today’s environment. It is also true that my political experience is of only four years, though my experience of observing politics closely as a journalist is for over four decades. And I have been attracted to politics since my times as a student. I have been attracted to the ideological worldview of JP ji, (Ram Manohar) Lohia ji, Chandrashekhar, and later Nitish Kumar ji and have had relations with them. So the offer did seem like a challenge. But I thought that seniors in Parliament will guide me, and like I have worked seriously as an MP, I will try to work with commitment in this position. Dr (Sarvepalli) Radhakrishnan (the second president of India) said a second chamber is needed. It is believed (that) if Lok Sabha takes decisions under public pressure, then the Upper House, where there are people with creative thinking, would think over it cooly and correct the hasty decision. (MA) Ayyangar (former Lok Sabha speaker) defined it further, saying we should not be a clog. We feel it (Rajya Sabha) is necessary. I have seen brilliant discussion in the House. a solution to the problems faced by the country. There is debate over jobs – some say promise has not been fulfilled, the other side gives figure. There is debate over artificial intelligence and how it can create job losses. You cannot stop technology. Earlier, ideologies used to change the world, now it is technology. We will soon overtake China in terms of population. No country has been able to find a job model for such a big population; a growth model that can absorb all. Shouldn’t we discuss these issues? Did we discuss it ever? Was there any debate on global warming issues, on missing rivers and drinking water problems? about the challenge. We have to address these issues. There was a purpose behind forming the NDA. Because of the chair that I occupy now, I do not want to comment on the situation leading to it. But, at least we see a serious effort to address the issues confronting the nation. I think the best we can contribute towards it, we should. Ideologically, you will not find sharper politicians than socialists. I am reading a book by James Crabtree called The Billionaire Raj (on inequality). Socialist thought is most relevant today. The era of politics of ideology is going to return. Without ideology, the economic disparity in the society cannot be addressed. Not at all. We have seen Emergency. We felt democracy will not return if elections are held. It was only because of this that people in power during that time called elections. Our people are very mature. When they are awake, democracy cannot get weakened. I feel technology - there are some side effects of social media too - also has a positive impact. They keep an eye on everything.