Opposition cries foul as 8 bills passed in Lok Sabha in past week

Eight bills were passed in last week in 191 minutes in Lok Sabha where 24 hours were allotted for discussions while three bills crossed the hurdles in Rajya Sabha after a little over 6 hours of debate.

This came as the government went ahead with the passage of bills in both Houses, amid vociferous demands from the Opposition for a statement from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and an immediate discussion on Manipur.

In Lok Sabha, 18 MPs participated in the debates on six bills while two were cleared without any debate, even as the Opposition insisted citing conventions and rules that no substantive business should be taken up in the House as their no-confidence motion has been accepted.

Rajya Sabha witnessed a better record in terms of debates, as 19 MPs participated in the discussion of three bills for 6:22 hours, mainly due to the walk out by the Opposition.

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Six bills were passed after Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla accepted Congress Deputy Leader Gourav Gogoi’s notice for the no-trust motion. Birla has not announced a date for the debate so far.

Four critical bills – Biological Diversity (Amendment) Bill 2022, Multi-State Co-operative Societies (Amendment) Bill 2022, Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill 2023 and Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill 2023 – together saw 157 minutes of debate by 15 MPs but none from the Opposition. All these bills were allotted four hours each for debate except for the one on forest conservation, which was allowed three hours.

Interestingly, all these bills were vetted by Joint Committees of Parliament and not by subject-specific Department Related Standing Committees. Opposition alleged that at least the bills on biodiversity and forest conservation were not sent to Standing Committees headed by non-BJP MPs because the government feared that the final reports would be adverse.

The Biological Diversity (Amendment) Bill was debated by four MPs for just 33 minutes while the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill was discussed for 38 minutes by four MPs. The bill on multi-state cooperatives saw Lok Sabha spending 44 minutes, including Cooperation Minister Amit Shah’s reply and the procedure to pass the bill.

It also took just 42 minutes and speeches by three MPs for the Lok Sabha to pass The Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill 2023, which amended 42 laws on various subjects to decriminalise or reduce punishment for several offences.

“This is exactly why these bills needed to be scrutinised. The government should have waited. They do not want a discussion on Manipur and they do not want debates on bill. They want to bulldoze bills in din,” a senior Opposition leader.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi has dared the Opposition to defeat the bill in the House rather than demanding an immediate discussion on no-confidence motion.

Lok Sabha also passed the Repealing and Amending Bill in nine minutes with an MP participating besides clearing the contentious Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, which opens up the sector for more privatisation, in 19 minutes with just two MPs airing their views.

The National Nursing and Midwifery Commission Bill 2023 and the National Dental Commission Bill 2023 were passed in six minutes without any debate last Friday.

In Rajya Sabha, the Constitution (ST) Order (Fifth Amendment) Bill to include some communities from Chhattisgarh and Constitution (ST) Order (Third Amendment) Bill to include some communities from Himachal Pradesh were passed in 2:15 hours (18 MPs) and 1:43 hours (13 MPs) respectively.

The Cinematograph (Amendment) Bill was also passed in Rajya Sabha after a 2:23 hour debate in which 19 MPs participated.

Trinamool Congress Rajya Sabha floor leader Derek O’Brien said all bills are important and they are being passed but they have to prioritise. The Opposition views that the Manipur violence need to be taken up at the earliest.

“The government wants a short duration discussion in Rajya Sabha at a time they decide leisurely. This mode of discussion allows only two-and-half hours for discussion. Is that possible? What we need is an immediate discussion in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha,” a senior Opposition leader said.