New Delhi: Democracy is in danger; democracy is being murdered. You must have heard these words a lot from the mouths of politicians. But this time, the uproar and wastage of time in the House that have been seen in the budget session of the Parliament are actually a big threat to democracy. Actually, in the budget session of the Parliament, the work of the Lok Sabha was overshadowed by the uproar of the MPs, and the work of the House was badly affected. The productivity of the House was 34.85 percent for the entire budget session. The productivity of the first part of the session was 83.80 percent, while that of the second was only 5.29 percent. Whereas, in the case of the Upper House, this entire figure remained at only 24.4 percent.
There were 25 sittings of the House in the Lok Sabha:
Despite the huge uproar in the Lok Sabha, one big thing was that the session was run for its full time. The session, which began on January 31, was adjourned sine die on April 6. During this 11th session of the 17th Lok Sabha, there were a total of 25 sittings of the House, which lasted for 45 hours and 55 minutes. On the other hand, after the House was adjourned, the Lok Sabha Speaker on Thursday (April 6) invited all the members for tea, although very few MPs attended it. Regarding the work done in the session, the Lok Sabha speaker said that the discussion on the motion of thanks to the president's address lasted for 13 hours and 44 minutes. 143 members took part in it. The general discussion on the Union Budget lasted for 14 hours and 45 minutes, during which 145 members participated in the debate. During the session, eight government bills were introduced, and six were passed.
According to the information, during the budget session, the department-related Standing Committees of the Lok Sabha presented 62 reports. 29 of the starred questions were answered orally during the session. A total of 133 issues of public importance were raised by the members during the Zero Hour after the Question Hour. A total of 436 issues were taken up under Rule 377. In the session, 23 statements were made and 2799 papers were laid on the table.
At the end of the session, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla said that inappropriate conduct and behaviour are not beneficial for the Parliament or the nation. He said that it was not at all right to lower the dignity of the House. He further said that there has been a high degree of decorum in the House, but the conduct of some MPs during the session was not proper. It is absolutely unacceptable for some members to bring down the dignity of the House by coming to the well. Improper behaviour is harmful to the democratic norms of the House and the country. During this time, many Union ministers, including PM Narendra Modi and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, were present in the House.
What was the condition of the Rajya Sabha?
Due to frequent disruptions, the Upper House's productivity in the second phase of the budget session was only 6.4 percent. Giving information before the end of the session, Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar said that the productivity of the first part of the budget session was 56.3%. In the second, it decreased to just 6.4 percent. The productivity of the house as a whole was just 24.4 percent. 103 hours and 30 minutes of the Rajya Sabha were marred by disruptions and noise.
Expressing concern over the disruption, the chairman said, Let us consider this dismal performance of the House and find a way out. At the time when the chairman was giving this information, the opposition continued to create a ruckus. Rajya Sabha proceedings were disrupted on the last day due to noise and uproar. The House was adjourned until 2 a.m. due to the ruckus in the morning. After that, the house was adjourned sine die. Thursday was the last day of the session.
The Chairman said in his address that the 259th session of the Rajya Sabha is coming to an end, but today there is also a matter of concern. He said that the legislature is the watchdog of democracy. The public is our watchdog. We are answerable to the public. Our primary duty is to serve the public. He said that the holy houses of the Parliament are meant for the overall welfare of the people, discussion, deliberations, and debates. What an irony it is that today chaos in the Parliament is becoming a new tradition! A new norm is being created, which is proving fatal for democracy.
Vice President Dhankhar said that this is very worrying and painful. Debates, dialogue, and deliberations in Parliament have been replaced by disruptions and noise. Stopping the functioning of Parliament and making it a political weapon can have serious consequences for our politics. He said that due to the stalling of the Parliament, there has been great disappointment among the people at large. We are becoming an object of contempt and ridicule in the public mind. We need to live up to the expectations of the people.
Let us tell you that the second phase of the budget session was quite raucous. In both houses of the Parliament, the work could not be done properly due to fierce confrontation between the ruling party and the opposition. The ruling party was demanding an apology from Rahul Gandhi for his statements made abroad. While the opposition was adamant on demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) inquiry into the Adani case. This conflict increased further after the cancellation of Rahul Gandhi's membership. Opposition MPs in the House were protesting by wearing black clothes and shouting slogans in the well.
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