Parliament logjam: Will Rajya Sabha also see 'harsh' Lok Sabha-style suspensions?

The gloves are off and the knives sharpened. A determined Narendra Modi government could now try to replicate the ‘Lok Sabha formula’ to bring normalcy to the Upper House of Parliament by making a plea before the Chairman Hamid Ansari to enforce discipline against the slogan-shouting Opposition members. Notwithstanding the unprecedented unity shown so far by the regional and smaller parties with the Congress camp in the aftermath of the suspension of 25 Congress MPs on Monday, BJP strategists think the harsh measures (as imposed by Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan) could work in the ruling party’s favour. “The policy of disruption adopted by the Congress since the start of the Monsoon Session has invoked widespread public resentment across the country,” read a party statement. This is largely seen as a build-up by the government’s floor managers as they perhaps believe silencing Opposition voices by enforcing discipline is also a good parliamentary strategy. [caption id=“attachment_2379732” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Protesting Rajya Sabha MPs. PTI[/caption] A statement by Union Minister for Environment and Forests Prakash Javadekar clears some doubts about the BJP strategy. “We do not make any request to the Chair publicly”, said the known Modi-loyalist, when asked at the BJP’s regular briefing about whether the treasury bench in the Rajya Sabha would make a request to the Chair to enforce discipline among members. The saffron outfit, with a modest 48 members as against 68 Congress members, is in a hopeless minority in the Upper House. In fact, by taking advantage of its numbers, the Congress has so far been able to stonewall any major legislative business by the government. In fact, the controversial Land Bill would have become an Act by now had the government carried it through in the Upper House. The Lok Sabha, it may be recalled, had passed the bill during the Budget Session of Parliament in March 2015. Today and perhaps for the first time, the BJP came out openly and more directly when the Parliament passed a resolution stating that the Congress “has decided to resort to negative tactics in Parliament particularly using its numerical strength”. It added that, “the growing popularity of the NDA government led by Modi and the success of several initiatives has come to be an eye sore for the Congress”. BJP sources say that the government and the ruling party have realised the “real intent” of the Congress. “It’s a two-pronged approach. Firstly, they will not allow us to function and deliver. And then, the project the status-quo or non-performance as an issue before the people. This is not going to work anymore,” a senior leader said. Javadekar and another trusted Modi lieutenant Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi today made it clear that despite Congress attempts to paint the Modi regime as a ‘non-performing’ one, the government has able to deliver and achieve a few visible milestones. “The Naga peace pact signed on August 3 with the National Socialist Council of Nagaland (NSCN-IM) group is one such achievement. They (Congress) have been totally caught unawares,” said Javadekar. Another BJP leader said “more surprises await them” and added that a number of people’s welfare schemes like Make in India and insurance schemes had been launched by the government. Other BJP leaders mentioned how the Congress’ “Hindu terror” remarks that were ridiculed by Home Minister Rajnath Singh, had wounded the main Opposition party. BJP floor managers claim that the Congress is planning to stall proceedings in the Rajya Sabha and so, “requesting” the Chair to intercede or even passing a resolution to bring discipline to the House have not been ruled out. “If we do so, it would not be for the first time. In 2009-10, the UPA-II government used force and deployed marshals to eject eight Samajwadi Party MPs when they obstructed the passage of the women’s quota bill (that sought 33 per cent reservation) in the Rajya Sabha.” The House rules in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha say no member is allowed to display placards. However, there has also been a realisation that enforcing this rule will not be easy, and most of the smaller parties have stuck with the Congress on the grounds that the decision of the Lok Sabha Speaker, although technically legal, was a “bit harsh”. Congress leaders, on their part, are trying to sell the idea to the other Opposition parties that a “tyrannical” Chair could also spell doom for them. BJP floor managers are aware of this ploy and have tried to drag the bogey of the 1970s Emergency out of cold storage. “The Emergency was enforced by the Congress and so, we find it to be a mockery that those who jailed political rivals and put journalists behind bars are now talking about democracy,” said Javadekar. To further strengthen the argument they fished out the records of March 15, 1989 when Speaker of Lok Sabha in the Rajiv Gandhi government, Balram Jakhar had suspended as many as 63 MPs for “demanding the tabling of the Thakkar Commission report on the assassination of Indira Gandhi”. The BJP strategy is clear: Remind Socialist and Leftist friends that it was they who were suspended in 1989, when Congress had numbers (over 400) on its side. “The BJP had just two members, so among the 63 people suspended were numerous Communists and Socialists. It is for them to reflect whether they should stand by such a party,” said a BJP MP. On the other hand, thinks Congress that the suspension of its members by the Speaker and the BJP has given the Opposition party the evidence it needs to accuse the Modi government of functioning in the manner of a ‘tana-shaahi’ (autocracy). The government’s floor managers feel that the Deputy Chairman of Rajya Sabha PJ Kurien has made it clear, on more than one occasion, to Congress members in the House that they should allow discussion. They say Kurien had expressed his “displeasure” when Congress members including Anand Sharma objected to External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj making her statement on charges against her in the controversy over former cricket administrator Lalit Modi. As of now, the Congress is dismissing the possibility of its parliamentarians incurring the wrath of the Rajya Sabha Chair. Perhaps its members trust Vice President Hamid Ansari’s sense of judgment. But the saffron party believes that despite the perceived softness and better sense of judgment of the Ansari-Kurien duo, there will be no room for a Congress ‘free-for-all’ in the Upper House. Only time will tell if the Rajya Sabha witnesses a Lok Sabha déjà vu.