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Mockery of Parliament |
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R. Vasudevan, Editor
Parliamentary democracy is still in its evolutionary stage in India. Having given universal franchise to all adults after Independence, India has yet to evolve the right conventions and precedents for proper debate in Parliament. All political parties are to blame for this.
Continuous disruptions of proceedings in Parliament have resulted in this monsoon session being washed away. The government and the opposition have failed to reach a common ground on ensuring the proper functioning of democracy. Ever since the new Lok Sabha was constituted, there has been hardly a day when matters were discussed in a dispassionate way. Congressmen feel it has much to do with the BJP’s inability to accept the defeat in the general election and loss of power. What started as a campaign against the inclusion of alleged tainted ministers in the Manmohan Singh Government snowballed into a major issue when former minister Shibu Soren tried to evade a arrest warrant. The Prime Minister had little choice than getting rid of Soren but that did not satisfy the opposition, they wanted more.
In a clear counter move, the Congress managed to dig up a decade-old case against former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Uma Bharti, reviving an arrest warrant. Taken aback, the BJP has decided to exploit it to the hilt giving the case a patriotic slant as it involved the unfurling of the national flag at a disputed place in Karnataka. Even as the BJP found the Uma Bharti case an ideal one to stir up emotions, a Congress Minister added fuel to the fire by casting aspersions on the role of the hero of the Shiv Sena, Veer Savarkar. The bedlam that resulted in Parliament was a mockery of democracy. The NDA also had a grouse that the Prime Minister had treated its delegation roughly and refused to accept a memorandum proposing changes in the Finance Bill. Manmohan Singh was entirely within his right to refuse to accept the memo which should have been discussed on the floor of the House.
In this showdown, precious hours have been wasted in irrelevant issues. None of the MPs seem to be interested in debating serious issues. Even the Budget was passed without debate. According to a conservative estimate, it costs Rs 20.25 lakh an hour (about Rs 1.23 crore a day) to run Parliament. During the Budget session, 47 hours were lost in the Lok Sabha. Another 40 hours were lost in the Rajya Sabha. That’s a total of 87 hours wasted, which adds up to about Rs 17.61 crore down the drain.
The Congress accuses the BJP of playing negative politics. Many believe this is only helping the Congress paint them as an unruly party that does not believe in playing the game according to the rules. To his credit, the Prime Minister has done all he could to defuse the situation. But the BJP seems to be busy in undermining his authority and show him as a weak leader. He has not been allowed to make a proper speech in the House and had to go on TV for the purpose.
This is a time for reflection and introspection. Senior political leaders need to put their heads together to set their house in order.
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