JOIN USParliament deadlock between Centre, Oppn cost Rs 130 cr of taxpayers' money: Report
The deadlock between the Opposition and the Centre in the Parliament over the Pegasus row cost over Rs 133 crore of taxpayers' money, as the Houses passed only a handful of Bills with minimal debate, NDTV reported quoting sources.
"So far Parliament has functioned only 18 hours out of the possible 107. Thus around 89 hours of working time have been wasted. This means that the total loss to the taxpayers is more than Rs 133 crore," a statement via unnamed sources is quoted as saying in the report.
The Monsoon Session, which started on July 19, saw relentless demand from the Opposition for a discussion on and a Supreme Court-monitored independent inquiry into the Pegasus spyware issue.
Reports surfaced earlier this month that Israeli spyware Pegasus was sold to governments for surveillance of opposition leaders, judges and activists.
The government has dismissed the reports, calling it a non-issue and asked the Opposition to let Parliament function.
The productivity, which has touched just 21.60 per cent in nine sittings in two weeks since July 19, could have been much lower if both sides did not have agreed to hold a discussion on Covid-19 on July 20, which lasted for 4.37 hours.
Sources in the Rajya Sabha Secretariat told DH the annual budget for Rajya Sabha, including Rajya Sabha TV and Parliamentary Committees functioning, is around Rs 460 crore and the expenditure would come to around Rs 1.2 crore per day for a year whether the House sits or not.
The Bills passed so far are The Marine Aids to Navigation Bill 2021, The Juvenile Justice Amendment Bill 2021, The Factoring Regulation (Amendment) Bill 2021 and The Coconut Development Board (Amendment) Bill 2021. The Limited Liability Partnership (Amendment) Bill 2021 and The Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation (Amendment) Bill 2021 were among the four Bills introduced in the Rajya Sabha.
(With DHNS inputs)
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