On the eve of the winter session of the Indian
parliament, Prime Minister Narendra Modi
has issued the following statement: “The Winter Session of the
Parliament is starting today. In this cool environment, we will do good work in
the interest of the nation with a cool temperament, such is my hope. The people
of this country have given us the mandate to run the government. But everyone who has been given a place in the
Parliament has been given the responsibility to run the nation. And that is
why, it is my firm belief that the people sitting in the government and all the people sitting in the Parliament
will work together for taking this country forward, and we will have a very
fruitful session. In the last session, a lot of good work was done because of
the active participation of the opposition. I believe that this time, too, we
will have a similar experience” (emphasis added) (See here).
Mr. Modi is a
genuine statesman. If only he had been a Member of Parliament since 2004...
While the productivity of the Lok
Sabha fluctuated generally over the 100% mark, since 1999-2004 there has been a
steady decline, as Figure 1 shows.
(Source: http://www.prsindia.org/media/essential-stats/productivity-of-lok-sabha-over-the-years-3129/)
The Lok Sabha that was just dissolved
had the worst productivity in history. All the sessions were beset with
disruptions chiefly by the BJP. If only the BJP at that time had received
advice from Mr. Modi regarding how to function in parliament even when a party sits in
opposition, many important bills might well have become laws by now.
But then Mr.
Narendra Modi is a wise leader. If only he had been a Member of Parliament
since 2004...
During the period 2009-14, the BJP
stalled proceedings of the house on the following occasions:
- Illicit land deals of Robert Vadra (See here)
- Appointment of Lokayukta in Gujarat (See here).
- CAG report on allocation of coal blocks, demanding that the then Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh resign (See here).
- Demand for Mr. P.C. Chidambaram’s resignation (See here).
If Mr. Narendra Modi’s advice were
available to the BJP then, he would have told the party to make its displeasure
clear but carry out their protests outside the Parliament.
Of course,
Mr. Modi is truly well-versed in the etiquettes of Parliament. If only he had
been a Member of Parliament since 2004...
In
the 1950s, the Indian Parliament was a role model for legislatures of other
newly independent countries (Verma and Tripathi, 2013). However, “The 15th Lok
Sabha lost approximately 600 hours of parliamentary proceedings due to frequent
disruptions”, (Verma and Tripathi, 2013, p. 157). An editorial in the Economic
and Political Weekly stated ‘the noise, scuffle and disruption, rather than
deliberation and opposition through debate, are gradually becoming the norm in
both houses of Parliament” (quoted in Verma and Tripathi, 2013). Clearly, the
behaviour in recent times has been contrary to a resolution so solemnly adopted
by the Parliament in the fiftieth year of India’s independence:
“We, the Members of Lok Sabha, meeting
in a specially convened Golden Jubilee Session of both Houses of Parliament, to
commemorate the completion of half a century of freedom... Having
remembered with gratitude the great sacrifices made and the salutary service
rendered by our freedom fighters... Do now solemnly affirm... That the prestige
of Parliament be preserved and enhanced... by
- Maintaining the inviolability of the Question Hour.
- Refraining from transgressing into the official areas of the House, or from any shouting of slogans...” (See Parliament of India)
And what has been the actual behaviour of the parliamentarians in
the last few years? (McHendry, 2007)
- Creating a din
- Rushing to the well of the house
- Rushing to the podium
- Sitting on a dharna
- Display of placards
- Frequent walkouts and boycotts
The consequence of all such
disruptions of the Lok Sabha can be seen in Figure 2. Especially shameful has been the performance of winter sessions of 2010 and 2013.
(Source: http://www.prsindia.org/media/essential-stats/productivity-of-different-sessions-of-the-15th-lok-sabha-3130/)
We all know
that Mr. Modi is a dignified politician and he would never have allowed things
to come to such a pass. If only he had been a Member of Parliament since
2004...
The
disruptions in Parliament have meant that the actual legislative business of
the house has been severely affected. Critical reforms have stalled because the
bills could not be taken up. See PRS India for a complete list.
Some of the
important bills that the UPA was unable to pass include the following:
- Raising the FDI cap in insurance to 49%. This is the same proposal that the NDA wishes to bring to the Parliament now but had objected to it when in opposition (See here).
- Women’s reservation bill
- The Marriage Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2010
- The Judicial Standards and Accountability Bill, 2010.
In
all, there are about 40 bills pending from the UPA regime which might have to
be taken up by the NDA. It’s not clear whether these bills will fit into the
vision of the Modi government; if not, these bills will be given a quiet
burial. A look at Figure 2 gives clear indication why the UPA has left such a
large legacy of pending bills for the NDA.
As Mr. Modi rightly stated (in the quote at the beginning of this note)
“...every one who has been given a place in the Parliament has been given the
responsibility to run the nation”. Clearly, everyone did not contribute to the
governing of the nation during the term of the previous Lok sabha.
But, then, Mr. Narendra Modi, a very responsible
politician, was not on the scene during the previous Lok Sabha. If only he had
been a Member of Parliament since 2004...
References:
McHenry D.E.
(2007) “Parliaments in India: Is there order midst the chaos?”, A paper prepared for presentation at the
Western Political Science Association Annual Meeting, Las Vegas, Nevada (http://www.cgu.edu/PDFFiles/SPE/workingpapers/politics/Parliaments%20in%20India%2022507.pdf).
Verma R. and V.
Tripathi (2013) “Making Sense of the
House: Explaining the Decline of the Indian Parliament amidst Democratization”,
Studies in Indian Politics, Vol. 1,
No. 2, pp. 153-177 (http://inp.sagepub.com/content/1/2/153)
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