The political tug-of-war between the ruling and opposition parties has completely paralysed Parliament. It has jammed the third wheel of democracy. All legislative work has stopped, and issues of people’s interest are not being discussed in the highest national forum. Parliament functions with mutual understanding between the treasury and opposition benches and the spirit of cooperation. Important legislative business, including the finance bill, is pending before the House in the current budget session.
The Union Budget has to be passed by both Houses within 75 days of its introduction. It is as much the responsibility of the opposition parties as that of the Union government to conduct this important business. The opposition says it has no issues with the budget and other bills brought in by the Centre and expresses its willingness to support them. It, however, demands the opportunity to discuss issues such as the alleged stock manipulation by the Adani group and the “misuse” of central government agencies to target its leaders. It cites numerous precedents where governments in the past had allowed discussions on financial scams, and joint parliamentary committees were set up to probe such cases. Notices from opposition leaders seeking discussion on these issues have, so far, not been accepted, resulting in a sit-in by the entire opposition outside Parliament. The government has maintained that the Adani issue is being looked into by the Supreme Court and a panel set up by it, adding that the opposition should wait for the outcome.
The ruling party has also demanded an apology from Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for allegedly defaming India through his recent remarks in the UK. A privilege notice has also been moved against him, seeking his expulsion from the House. The Congress has termed the ruling party’s charge against Rahul as a ruse to deny the opposition a chance to debate issues in Parliament. Besides the Congress-BJP spat, other opposition parties are also on the streets. While they are on the same page with the Congress on the Adani issue, they focus more on the alleged misuse of central agencies. As both sides appear unrelenting, the complete lack of cooperative spirit threatens to wipe out all the coming sessions in the run-up to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.