Winter session of Parliament appears headed for washout

The winter session of Parliament appears to be headed for a virtual washout with the third week ending on Friday without transaction of any substantial business because of the Opposition ruckus over demonetisation and some other issues.

Lok Sabha

The 16-day-long deadlock over demonetisation in the Lok Sabha deepened on Friday with government hitting back at the agitating Opposition and demanding its apology for paralysing Parliament, trigerring fresh round of protests.

As soon as the House assembled for the day, Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge rose to make some points but the Bharatiya Janata Party members latched on to President Pranab Mukherjee’s certain observations made on Thursday, to target the opposition party.

Soon, a verbal spat broke out between the two sides and the speaker adjourned the House till 11.30 pm.

When the House met again, Kharge said the Opposition was ready for debating demonetisation and has been continuously requesting for it.

"We are ready for debate on demonetisation and its repercussions," he said.

However, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar immediately shot back saying the Opposition has disrupted the House for 16 days and held it to ransom and they must tender an apology.

"For 16 days they have disrupted the House and held it hostage. Majority wanted to debate. But Congress, TMC (Trinamool Congress) and Left members are not allowing the House to function. The situation has reached such a stage that the President had to speak against the disruption. They must tender apology to the people of the country," he said.

Bharatiya Janata Party MP Meenakshi Lekhi said for protests and sit-ins, as suggested by the President, Jantar Mantar is the best place and not the Parliament and hence, the Opposition must apologise.

BJP veteran L K Advani, who had on Wednesday expressed his displeasure over the continuing impasse in the House, was at one point seen pacifying agitated ruling party members.

As the pandemonium continued, the speaker adjourned the House till noon.

The impasse continued when it re-assembled and Human Resource Development Minister Prakash Javadekar tabled a bill amid the din before the speaker adjourned the House for the day.

With four day holiday starting from Saturday, the House will meet again on Wednesday. The session, which has seen very little business being transacted, is scheduled to conclude on Friday next.

Earlier, the House remembered the Parliament attack of 2001 and recalled the courage of eight Delhi Police, Central Reserve Police Force and Parliament Security Service Personnel who had laid down their lives defending the people inside the Parliament complex. The speaker took up the matter today as the Lok Sabha will not meet on December 13.

Rajya Sabha

Angry Opposition protests over government’s move to slash import duty on wheat to zero allegedly to benefit multinational firms forced adjournment of the proceedings of the Rajya Sabha twice on Friday.

Congress, Bahujan Samaj Party, Samajwadi Party, Janata Dal-United and Left members alleged that the move to slash import duty on wheat from 10 per cent to zero at a time when the country has enough buffer stock will hit the farmer hard. The move ahead of the winter wheat crop will help MNCs to dump cheap wheat from US, France and Ukraine in the country, they said.

Food Minister Ram Vilas Paswan said there was no shortage of wheat in the country and the decision was taken to cool down domestic prices which have shown an upward trend in recent weeks.

"Last few days, wheat prices are on the rise," he said, adding, "This is not a permanent decision," indicating it can be reviewed if need arises.

Minister of State for Agriculture Parsottambhai Rupala said the decision was necessitated as domestic prices were rising. The government uses market intervention to keep prices in check, he said, adding that the decision on import duty will be reconsidered if farmers faced problems.

Raising the issue, Communist Party of India-Marxist leader Sitaram Yechury said he had given a notice under rule 267 to suspend business of the day to discuss the decision that will ‘ruin Indian farmers’ while MNCs will rake in super-profits.

Asserting that wheat prices in retail market were rising because of demonetisation, he said the farmers are already hit hard by demonetisation as they are unable to buy seeds and fertiliser due to cash shortage.

"He has to make distress sale," he said adding wheat is being sold at Rs 700-800 per qunital as against MSP of Rs 1540 fixed by the government.

Describing the move to reduce import duty as 'shameful act', he said it will lead to food riots and added he condemns the decision. "This is against the interest of the nation and its farmes. It is an anti-national act," he said.

Bhupinder Yadav (Bharatiya Janata Party) said another 267 notice cannot be taken up if debate has resumed and remained inconclusive on another notice accepted under the same rule. Deputy Chairman P J Kurien agreed with Yadav and said he is not allowing Yechury’s motion.

BSP chief Mayawati said the decision will benefit the rich and was against the farmers, while Sharad Yadav (JD-U) said wheat prices have fallen in the world. He also questioned the need to allow imports when there were enough stocks available within the country.

Jairam Ramesh (Congress) said if the buffer stock is high, why were imports being allowed.

A good monsoon, perfect soil conditions and moisture also have created ideal conditions for a bumper wheat crop but reduction in duty would mean that the companies of US, France and Ukraine would get benefited and Indian farmers would go without any incentive, the senior Congress leader said.

"This is a slap on face of Indian agriculture in the year when it is celebrating 50 years of green revolution," he said adding that farmers have no cash to buy seeds and fertilisers.

"This is videsh uthan (benefit of foreigners) and anti-farmer," Ramesh said.

Sukhendu Shekhar Roy (Trinamool Congress) asked the Chair to take a sense of the House if an obituary reference should be made for the 111 persons who died standing in queues before banks and ATMs in the past one month post-demonetisation.

As Kurien moved to Zero Hour mentions, opposition members trooped in the Well raising anti-government slogans, shouting ‘Kisan virodhi yeh sarkar nahi chalegi, nahi chalegi (anti-farmer government will not be tolerated)’, forcing him to adjourn the proceedings till noon.

When the House met at noon, the pleas of Chairman Hamid Ansari to allow the question hour to function went unheeded, with opposition members on their feet raising slogans.

Soon after he called for taking up the Question Hour, the opposition members including those from the Congress and the SP were in the Well and raised slogans. Slogans of ‘Kisan virodhi yeh sarkar nahin chalegi’ rented the air as Chairman said that ‘you cannot do this during Question Hour’.

When Ansari again took up Question Hour, protesting Opposition members gave back a resounding ‘No’, while those from the treasury benches shouted 'Yes' waiving questions.

Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said ‘unfortunately the opposition members are not allowing the House to function. The President also appealed to members to do their job by allowing the House to function. They should be ashamed of themselves and take his advice to allow important issues to be discussed.’

Naqvi alleged that the opposition members were only creating a ruckus ever since the start of the winter session.

"There are important issues that have been listed. These relate to the welfare of the poor, weaker sections, women, employees and disabled," he said.

Naqvi said they should either allow the Question Hour to function or take forward the debate on demonetisation which has remained inconclusive.

The pleas of Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad to the Chairman also did not yield any dividend. Some opposition also alleged that it was not the opposition, but the ruling party which is creating the uproar.

Yechury (Communist Party of India-Marxist) said the members wanted to speak on the issues of slashing import duty on wheat and demonetisation.

Ansari said, “Nothing can be done in this noise.”

Amid the continued uproar by opposition, he adjourned the House till 2.30 pm.

When the House reassembled, the issue of lack of quorum was raised by Congress leader Anand Sharma as a point of order.

Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman P J Kurien said he can raise the issue of quorum only when he starts the proceedings.

As he read out the private members’ business, Kurien raised the quorum issue and then directed the ringing of the quorum bell and taking a count of the members present in the House.

During this, Leader of the Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad got up and said quorum was the responsibility of the government and if they cannot do it, then the responsibility should be handed over to the Opposition.

Naqvi said the Opposition has a role in running of the House as well as its adjournment. He also wanted to recite a couplet but the Chair said nothing can go on record so long as a decision on quorum is taken.

Following a final count after the bell was rung twice, Kurien adjourned the House for the day, within minutes after it reconvened, due to lack of quorum.

Interestingly, some Congress members present in the House left just seconds before the House had reassembled.

Photographs: PTI Photo