The Hindu Business Line : Parliament in 2007: A lack of seriousness

Parliament in 2007 was hardly different from what it was in 2006. Proceedings during the year were marked, almost everyday, by disorder, division, anger, acrimony and agitation over some issue or the other. A distinct lack of seriousness was quite apparent.

During the February-March and April-May two-phase Budget session, several members from both the Government and the Opposition kept away, campaigning for the marathon seven-phase UP elections running almost parallel to the session.

The Lok Sabha held 32 sittings, far less than the originally scheduled 52. It had another 17 sittings each in the Monsoon and Winter Sessions, totalling 76 sittings, far less than the recommended 100-plus.

As expected, it was a stormy monsoon session that ended abruptly, four days ahead of schedule — on September 10. It was chaos from day one for the session, which commenced on August 10.

The Lok Sabha lost 41 working hours and Rajya Sabha 42, owing to disruption of proceedings over the Government-Opposition face-off on the Indo-US civilian nuclear deal and other issues.

Distractions from business

A shameful event during the session was Lok Sabha’s reprimand of RJD member Rajesh Kumar Manjhi, who went on an official tour with a woman, posing as his wife; the House suspended him for 30 sittings.

For days together, lawmakers were aflutter, insisting that they had been likened to “headless chickens” in their reaction to the Indo-US nuclear deal by Mr Ronen Sen, India’s ambassador in Washington.

After facing close questioning by the privileges committees of both Houses, Mr Sen was let off with a warning.

The spectre of a mid-term poll also hung over Parliament during the entire session as the Left continued with its veiled threats about the Government having to face “serious consequences” if it went ahead with the nuclear deal.

The Winter Session ended as the shortest ever, with Nandigram and the nuclear issue casting their shadows on most of the 17 sittings.

Discussions on Nandigram were held in both Houses despite the initial reluctance of the CPI(M) to include a reference to the word ‘Nandigram’ in the discussion.

The discussion on the Indo-US civilian nuclear deal, an issue that paralysed proceedings for a good part of the monsoon session in July-August, came at last after prolonged deliberations among different political parties. It was a short duration discussion that did not entail voting.

(The author, a former Deputy Editor, PTI, is a New Delhi-based writer.)