A taste of what is to come in Parliament

The first session of the 18th Lok Sabha and the concurrent Rajya Sabha session started on a lively note with both the ruling side and the Opposition trying to be seen and felt, though both went overboard at times. There were contrasts and comparisons between the performances of both sides, and it seemed that both carried into the House some of the rancour that marked their election campaigns. The only business of the Houses was the President’s address to the joint session and the debate on the motion of thanks. Both sides used it as an occasion for political thrusts and parries, and more to attack the other side than to talk about themselves and their ideas and policies. There was little conversation and dialogue, and there was a lot of distrust and hostility. That does not augur well for the coming sessions of this Parliament.  

A discernible change was the new-found confidence of the Opposition, now in greater strength. Newly anointed Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi impressed with the range and content of his first speech, and he posed some serious questions to the government. The treasury benches did well to listen to him. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s reply mainly targeted the Congress and the Opposition, and he did not respond to many of the concerns and questions raised by the Opposition. Unfortunately, he also tried to personally ridicule Rahul Gandhi. The Opposition did not bring any glory to itself by continuously disrupting the prime minister’s speech. Modi, through his words and actions, seemed reluctant to acknowledge the shift in equations in Parliament, and is still in his earlier mode of absolute and unquestioned power. But it should be noted that he was finally made to break his studied silence on Manipur. That may just be a gesture, forced on him by the new circumstances.  

Parliament is the forum for democratic contestation of the highest order, for statement and examination of general positions and policies, and criticism of specifics. This can be done only when there is no narrow partisanship on the floor and at the level of the presiding officers. Both Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar need to be aware of their high responsibility to ensure neutrality in the conduct of proceedings. The large-scale expunction of some portions of Rahul Gandhi’s speech by the Speaker was unfair and unwarranted. The Speaker also read out a House resolution on the Emergency without consulting the Opposition. The presiding officers should always maintain the trust of the Opposition with their words, decisions, and actions because they belong to the entire House, not to individual parties.