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The Bihar results have poured water on the BJP’s hopes to strengthen its position in the Upper House. A number of reform Bills, including the GST, may face Opposition hurdles unless the party reworks it strategy for the Rajya Sabha.
The JD(U) has been very vocal on the GST Bill. Party MP KC Tyagi, who was a member of the Select Committee that considered the Bill, wanted several changes to make it more federal. Accordingly, the key issue the BJP may have to deal with will be on the federal character of several pieces of legislation like the Land Bill and the Electricity (Amendment) Bill.
The result will not change the situation in the Rajya Sabha, where Bihar has 16 seats. At present, the BJP has four of those seats while the JD(U) has 12. With its present tally of less than 60 seats in the Bihar Assembly, the BJP’s strength will reduce to three in the Rajya Sabha by 2020.
Opposition MPs have already started advising the government not to take any adventurist steps such as bypassing standing committees and adopting the money Bill route to sidestep Rajya Sabha scrutiny.
“This result will strengthen the Opposition not just in the Rajya Sabha, but in the Lok Sabha too. Many members of the BJP and its allies are likely to join us on several issues such as land law and several anti-labour legislation the Centre is planning,” said a hopeful KN Balagopal, CPI(M) deputy leader in the Rajya Sabha.
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