The classic case of Indian opposition parties hijacking every session of the Parliament has now become their USP. Interestingly, just 24-48 hours ahead of almost every session some new issue mysteriously begins to trend which invariably becomes the single point agenda of the opposition. The video of the Manipur women magically surfaced just hours before the parliament monsoon session and this was the sole talking point of the opposition. This pattern of hopping onto a preset agenda is truly intriguing.
Never keen
on keeping ground to the ear instead of pulling up the government for its
failures and debating on developmental issues, the Indian opposition seems to
avidly latch on to anti-India reports to hit back at the government. Sad but true,
reports from unknown foreign media agencies become the sole reason to block the
parliament for the opposition. The case in point is the Hindenburg report on
Adani, the NYT report on Israeli surveillance software Pegasus and the French
Mediapart’s proclamations on the Rafale aircraft acquisition. Consequently,
entire sessions in both houses of Parliament concluded without any meaningful
discussions on important legislations.
Amid
protests in parliament by the opposition over the Pegasus issue in the 2021 monsoon
session, 20 bills were passed in both houses of the Parliament without
discussion or if any minimal limited to the Treasury Bench MPs presenting the
bill. In clear terms, 9.7 minutes were granted to deliberate and reflect on
each bill. A combative approach devoid
of working coordination between the government and the opposition is deepening
unbridgeable political divides. By renouncing the basic moral probity of
discussing real issues MPs are abdicating from their roles as people’s
representatives. This obstinate approach is derailing the functioning of the parliament.
The number of sittings has halved as compared to the 1st Lok Sabha
and the productivity too has taken a massive hit.
This obduracy
fortified with an overwhelming ambition of the opposition to get back to power
has caused them to fall into the same trap set for their government. The newly
minted I.N.D.I.A alliance looking for an opportunity to corner the Modi
government has harped on the Manipur issue to bolster their unity and
conviction towards national interests. The sudden appearance of a video of
Manipur women over two months after the incident has fit into this whole
strategy of things. The Manipur violence is an issue of extreme cause of
concern for the entire nation both in terms of internal stability and
territorial sovereignty. But the methodical politicking made by the opposition
has exposed their sinister agenda.
Amid uproar
for its immediate listing and discussion, the proceedings of both houses of parliament
on the first day were disrupted. Though the government agreed to discuss it, the
opposition demanded that the business be carried under Rule 267 of Rajya
Sabha’s Rules of Procedures and Conduct of Business. Under this, the House can
suspend all of its pending business in order to focus on a matter that requires
immediate attention. With a total of 31 bills lined up for the monsoon session,
the government agreed to discuss the Manipur issue as per Rule 176 where a
short-duration discussion on the matter of urgent public importance accompanied
by an explanatory note and signed by at least two MPs can be taken up. The
opposition refused this proposition and continued to block the parliament.
Home
Minister wrote letters to leaders to break the deadlock but to no avail. The
opposition issued a notice for a no-confidence motion (NCM) to force PM Modi to
speak on the Manipur issue knowing well they are critically short on numbers.
The ongoing turbulence in the state of Manipur has critically exposed inadequacies
in administration. Though the state and central government have acted swiftly,
the foresight to portend the consequences of a judicial verdict have widened
the existing chasms and ignited a deluge of violence.
The
opposition knew that they were way short of the numbers but to launch I.N.D.I.A
and relaunch Rahul Gandhi for the nth time, the ghatbandhan parties
collectively brought out NCM. This has eerie similarities to the 2018 NCM led
by TDP that terminated its alliance with the NDA and challenged the BJP
alleging the Centre’s discrimination towards the newly bifurcated state of
Andhra Pradesh. In both instances, the political parties wanted to score
political points. But the timing is really significant, back in 2018 PM Modi
used the opportunity to gain political mileage. Even this time it is no
different.
Unlike the
2018 NCM, where parties sat through the entire length of the debates and
conclusively ended with customary voting, the opposition members impatiently
walked out the house before PM Modi could even broach the Manipur issue. In his
133 minutes speech, PM Modi rebutted every allegation and effortlessly defended
the stance of the government on various aspects including the much-awaited
Manipur issue. The petulant opposition which has brought the parliament to
ransom and blocked its functioning for Manipur was amiss when PM Modi expressed
serious concern about the state and assuaged the people of the state. He also delved
into the incidents in the past that reeked of neglect and apathy of the
successive leaderships.
With his
unmatched oratory laced with wit, sarcasm and innuendos, besides frustrating
the opposition's attempts to nail the administration, Modi used this occasion
to connect to the people of India. Post-Karnataka assembly elections, the
Shining India Movement of 2004 when BJP faced a surprising defeat began to gain
some ground. Effortlessly rattling off various initiatives and reforms
undertaken in the past 9 years Modi flaunted his government’s achievements and
positioned BJP as the only viable alternative for the country.
Setting the
stage for the 2024 campaign, Modi confidently mocked at opposition to get ready
for the 2028 NCM. On the face of it, though the open challenge smacked of arrogance,
this sense of certainty is bolstered by the inadequacies of a confused
opposition befuddled by muddled priorities that lacks commitment and unabashed
drive.
For all the
bluster and posturing, the opposition managed to earn themselves a sobriquet of
disrupters. The empty opposition benches at the NCM epitomized their lack of
commitment and sincerity. Having demanded NCM, the opposition didn’t manage to
sit through the voting of the resolution and frittered away a rare opportunity
to put up a fight. The I.N.D.I.A alliance unveiled with fanfare turned out to
be a damp squib even before its launch. The symbolism in the name sounded
meaningless as that is not reflected in their actions. NCM debates are meant to
be extensive, elaborate peppered with stinging attacks. Hence the lame excuses
of Modi coming to Manipur towards the fag end of his speech definitely holds no
ground.
While Modi
meticulously laid out bare the contradictions of the opposition, the I.N.D.I.A
alliance failed to nail the government for its lapses in Manipur which have
witnessed over 140 deaths, destruction of properties, displacement of thousands
of people and horrifying abuse of women. The crux of wielding NCM by the opposition
is to hold the government accountable. But a silent vote on this resolution
exposed the dubious and vindictive intent of the opposition.
Poised to
become the third largest economy, Modi pledged his unflinching commitment to
helm the aspirations of young Indians. Expressing gratefulness towards the
citizens for reposing faith in his leadership, Modi clearly spelled out his
policies for governance. Surcharged with optimism, Modi’s ardent speech ignited
hope while the unstructured speeches of the opposition hardly inspire any
confidence. Opposition parties use the NCM debate to sound election bugle for
their election campaigns but 2023 NCM proved to be a dampener.
To end
political blame and ensure the proper functioning of parliament, the majority
party must take all other parties into confidence while the opposition should
play a constructive role. But the frequent disruptions and attempts to turn the
parliamentary platform for politicking are eroding the credibility of the
Indian parliament. Abusive tirades, sloganeering and heckling have reduced the
debates to verbal slinging matches. Parliament is a forum for MPs to reach out
to the entire nation. The people expect their representatives to debate on real
issues.
With the
opposition rearing to get back to power, their intent should be reinforced with
efficacious debates. By failing to don a role constructive role, the I.N.D.I.A
alliance deprived the country of a constructive and effective opposition,
quintessential for a thriving parliamentary democracy.
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