Pranab breaks House impasse

After week of deadlock on price rise, govt and Oppn strike a compromise

 After witnessing numerous disruptions for a week, Parliament’s monsoon session on Monday returned to normalcy, thanks to UPA’s troubleshooter and Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee.

Chairing a breakfast meeting, Mukherjee broke the gridlock with the mellowed-down Opposition, enabling an agreement to hold discussions on price rise in both Houses on Tuesday.

Rather than continuing to insist on the adjournment motion over the issue, the Opposition had relented and agreed on a resolution expressing concern over price rise and urging the government to take “effective steps” to contain prices.
The agreement has brought considerable relief to the government’s side, which can now hope to take up the official agenda in the Session that will last till August 26, including legislation on Civil Nuclear Liability, Food Security and the long-pending issue of 33 per cent reservation for women in legislatures.

The formula

The compromise formula to have a discussion on price rise was reached as Mukherjee used his persuasive skills to bring the Opposition around, sources in the Congress said.
But it was the tongue-in-cheek remark by CPM’s Sitaram Yechuri that underscored the importance of Mukherjee in the political scheme of things. Asked under what rule the discussion on Tuesday would be held, Yechuri  said: “Under no rule. It is Pranab Mukherjee’s rule.”

A clearly relieved Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar said: “I feel happy that the Opposition and treasury benches have agreed to hold a discussion on the effects of inflation on the common man. The discussion will be held on Tuesday and the House will function now.”
During the morning meeting, Mukherjee softened up the Opposition leaders by requesting them to suggest how to end the stalemate since the chairs in both Houses had ruled that discussions under rules leading to voting would not be possible.
 Apart from Mukherjee, the government side was represented at the meeting by Union Home Minister P Chidambaram, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal, Science & Technology Minister Prithviraj Chavan and Food & Civil Supplies Minister Sharad Pawar.

Leaders of the Opposition in both Houses Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley, the Left’s Gurudas Dasgupta, Basudeb Acharia and A B Bardhan, Samajwadi Party’s Mulayam Singh Yadav and Ram Gopal Yadav, and JD (U)’s Sharad Yadav were also present.