NEW DELHI: With the first half of the Budget session, one of the most acrimonious in recent years, wrapping up on Friday, all eyes are now on second leg when Parliament reconvenes on March 9.
The two-week-long stormy session also witnessed heated exchanges over the India-US interim trade deal and unpublished memoir of former Army chief M M Naravane, which paralysed the proceedings of the Lower House since the session began on January 28.
The session saw a breakdown of the ties between the government and the Opposition, resulting in the latter moving a no-confidence motion against Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and the BJP, a substantive motion against Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi.
The flashpoint came with a speech by Rahul Gandhi escalating his attack on the government over the US-India interim trade agreement, and accusing it of having “sold off” the nation. Speaking during the Budget discussion, Gandhi said the government was attempting to “quietly push through” an interim arrangement with the US, which invited sharp criticism from the government.
Adding to the turbulence was a political storm over a book authored by General Manoj Naravane. Portions of the book, which reportedly touch upon sensitive security and policy issues, became a flashpoint, with Opposition members seeking a detailed discussion in the Lok Sabha. They argued that the contents raised serious questions that warranted clarification from the government.
The controversy escalated as repeated adjournments disrupted Question Hour and Zero Hour on multiple days. The House witnessed noisy protests leading to the suspension of seven Congress and one CPI-M member from the House for the remaining part of the session for unruly behaviour.
Another highlight of the session is the move against the Speaker, submitted last week by several Opposition parties. The Opposition accused Birla of functioning in a partisan manner and alleged that the LoP was not being allowed to speak on key national issues, while the government rejected the charges.
The Motion of Thanks to the President’s Address was overshadowed by a row over General Naravane’s ‘unpublished memoir’, after Rahul Gandhi tried to quote from it in the House. In an unusual departure from parliamentary norms, Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not deliver his customary reply to the Motion of Thanks.
The Lok Sabha is expected to take up the discussion on the no-confidence motion against Birla on the very first day of the second leg of the session. The government is likely to decide on the ‘substantive motion’ against Rahul Gandhi, submitted by BJP MP Nishikant Dubey, during the upcoming session.