Did govt take fright over unity of Opp. in Houses?
The circumstances that led the government to end the Monsoon Session of Parliament last Wednesday, two days ahead of schedule, and its subsequent decision to field as many as eight Union ministers at a press conference to defend and justify that decision, citing the disruptive conduct of Opposition parties, marks a low point in our national life. The way India’s democracy has evolved, the two Houses of Parliament are no stranger to chaos. But a platoon of ministers being dragooned for a press meet after the short-circuiting of the Monsoon Session, when the parliamentary affairs minister and the Leader of the House in the Rajya Sabha may have sufficed, is a distinct novelty. The country could have done without it.
What also appears new is the swooping down of the Rajya Sabha marshals in battalion strength, figuratively speaking, upon agitated members. The distasteful scenes that were witnessed led BJP’s opponents, including political stalwart and NCP chief Sharad Pawar who has been in Parliament 55 years, to allege that outsiders togged up as marshals were unleashed to inflict brutality upon MPs — an allegation hotly contested by the government.
An impartial and transparent inquiry is hard to institute, given how polarised national life has become. In the circumstances it may be worthwhile to close that chapter as a sorry saga and move on. Nevertheless, justifiably or not, a suspicion could linger whether a lapse of judgment allowed an enactment of the JNU syndrome — when armed goons descended upon the university campus to attack teachers and students — in Parliament House, and an apparent police inquiry came to nought.
A good question to ask is whether there would have been such a logjam in Parliament, and then curtailment of the session, if the government had been responsive to the fully justified Opposition demand for a threadbare debate on very important subjects such as the Pegasus scandal, the three farm laws, and the poor economic conditions of the people. Even on the last day, the government disdainfully dismissed the suggestion of Opposition parties to send the important General Insurance Business (Nationalisation) Amendment Bill to the select committee.
In the annals of Parliament, the Monsoon Session that was abruptly cut short will go down for its ingloriousness. In the Cabinet system, the Parliament is not only a place to pass legislation but also for government’s opponents to demand and get accountability. This vital latter aspect appeared to be wholly ignored.
Crucially, the just ended session of Parliament also saw an unexpected political development — the coming together of an array of non-BJP parties for the first time since 2014 when Prime Minister Narendra Modi assumed office. The question does stand out: would eight ministers have come out to denounce the Opposition parties for spreading “anarchy from the streets to Parliament” if these parties weren’t engaged in the process of coming together?
The uniting of Opposition parties is a work in progress and may never come to pass. But it is real enough even in its nascent stage to give the government a fright.
The uniting of Opposition parties is a work in progress and may never come to pass. But it is real enough even in its nascent stage to give the government a fright.