Land Bill passes Lok Sabha test, but destined to flop in Rajya Sabha

The Government managed to move nine amendments to the contentious Land Bill in Lok Sabha after much debate and drama with the Congress walking out and ally Shiv Sena choosing to abstain from the vote. But the real test starts now. The BJP will today face the impossible challenge of pushing the legislation through Rajya Sabha, where the numbers are loaded against it and a united opposition is in no mood to relent. In Lok Sabha, the passing of the amendments to the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Amendment) Bill 2015 came as MPs from the Congress, Trinamool Congress, Samajwadi Party, RJD and BJD walked out of the House. It had been predicted some time back that the Land Bill wouldn’t clear the Upper House without significant changes and despite the obvious discomfort, with the bill the Modi government in all likelihood will swallow this bitter pill in the interest of winning over the opposition at least on other critical legislation. Speaking after the amendments were passed, Rural Development Minister Birendra Singh dismissed the walkout by the opposition saying that they had failed to convince other MPs that the legislation was ‘anti-farmer’. [caption id=“attachment_2147187” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Congress MPs walk out of Lok Sabha during the vote on the Land Bill. PTI image[/caption] “I hope that we would manage the bill in Rajya Sabha also,” Singh said. However, given the manner in which the opposition in the upper house dealt with the relatively less controversial Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2015, the BJP government shouldn’t be as hopeful as Singh about clearing the Rajya Sabha. The opposition in the upper house had also earlier forced amendments to the motion of thanks to the President’s address, which was a huge embarrassment for the government. The Rajya Sabha on Tuesday referred the Mines Bill to a select committee despite the BJP strongly opposing the move. The united opposition moved amendments against the bill, creating the possibility of the government being put in an embarrassing situation if they were to be adopted. The opposition to the Mines Bill was that it had to be referred to a select committee since it hadn’t undergone the scrutiny of a standing committee. As this Indian Express report points out, after the Mines Bill met with this fate, other legislation like the Coal Mines Bill, and the Motor Vehicles (Amendment) Act Bill are also likely to go the same way. Given that these are bills on which the Rajya Sabha was relatively less opposed to, there seems to be almost no hope for the Land Bill. Though the findings of the select committee are not binding on the government, it would be an unwanted delay in the passage of this legislation and others that are deemed crucial for reform. The government is also reportedly keen on extending the session in order to try pass other legislation, since ordinances cannot be passed again if they lapse when Parliament is in session. A particular concern is the coal auction which is to end on 5 April. In fact, the government may even prolong the Budget Session by skipping a break until the auctions are completed. _Firstpost_'s Sanjay Singh also reported on how there is a view within the BJP that they made no friends in the Rajya Sabha when Prime Minister Narendra Modi was critical of almost every party in the opposition in the Rajya Sabha. In some ways it is seen as only having united them further in the Upper House of Parliament. It wouldn’t have hurt, as he points out, if the Prime Minister had been a bit softer on the opposition at least in the upper house of Parliament. The TRS has just one seat in the Rajya Sabha and AIADMK 11, which means that even with their support the BJP, which has 46 MPs, can’t stand up to a united opposition even if it gets ally Shiv Sena to vote in favour of the bill. In the Lok Sabha, despite the opposition walkout, there were minor victories for the BJP. Despite constantly voicing its opposition to the bill outside Parliament and vowing to oppose it, BJP ally Shiv Sena abstained from the voice vote in the Lok Sabha. Speaking outside Parliament, Shiv Sena MP Anant Geete said,“The Shiv Sena will always work in the interest of farmers.” Allies like the Akali Dal, which had earlier voiced concerns over the legislation, and the Lok Janshakti Party voted for the amendments moved by the government. Another ally, Swabhimani Paksha, moved an amendment which was negated and didn’t press for a division of votes. Every one of the 52 amendments moved by the Opposition was also negated or not pressed for. The relatively restrained action by allies like Shiv Sena and Swabhimani Paksha came after the government brought nine official amendments and added two clauses to the controversial legislation and even made last minute calls to their leaders to persuade them not to break ranks. Even non-NDA parties like the AIADMK and Telagana Rashtra Samiti voted in favour of the amendments after their demands were met by the government. According to AIADMK sources, the party supported the bill after the government conceded to its demand against acquiring land for private medical colleges and private educational institutions. TRS sources said their party decided to support the bill as the Centre incorporated the amendments in the consent and social impact clause.  with inputs from PTI