Opposition shouts Manipur, Government replies wait

Parliament’s Monsoon session opened last week with much expectations, after the near wash-out of debates in the Budget session.

- DEEPAK RAZDAN

The first week of two working days, however, showed the Opposition and the Government have not overcome their desire to score points over the other side. Instead of settling on a schedule for a Manipur debate, they are battling over whether the two Houses should adjourn listed business to discuss the pain and shame of Manipur’s ethnic violence. 

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla and Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar had a difficult task of allowing the Opposition to have its say, and the Government to have its way. Quick disruptions led to equally abrupt adjournments. The Opposition in both Houses gave notices under the Rules for adjournment of business for an immediate discussion on Manipur, and there was a strong demand for a statement by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Just before the Houses assembled for the session, the Prime Minister expressed the nation’s distress at the horrific incidents reported from the north-east State. The Opposition argued the debate must start immediately in the two Houses and its leaders were not willing to wait for another day, as suggested by the government. Battle lines were drawn between the two sides recently, when Opposition parties launched their new grouping INDIA, and the ruling NDA asserted it was winning another term in office in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.