Ahead of the start of the last session of the 15th Lok Sabha, the fate of Telangana and 40 other Bills is hanging fire as the Opposition seems to be in no mood to cooperate with the Government.
After an all-party meeting convened by the Government, it looked like a majority of the parties, even those who are supporting the Government, are not ready for discussions on crucial Bills. Other than the Vote on Account, it seemed unlikely that the Government will be able to evolve a consensus, either on Telangana or the anti-corruption legislations which have been cited as “top priority”. In all likelihood, the session is thus expected to transact very little business other than the Vote on Account.
The Opposition parties had made up their mind to not to allow the passage of any critical legislation if the ruling party insists on the pushing the Telangana Bill without adequate consensus in the House. The parties alleged that the Congress is unsure of the support of its own MPs to the Bill.
They further said the decision to bring the Telangana Bill is an indication the Government does not want a peaceful session.
In the all-party meeting convened by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kamal Nath, the parties advised the Centre to focus on the Vote on Account rather than Bills such as the Telangana Bill.
The Centre, apparently, is apprehending chaos in both the Houses over Telangana. Finance Minister P Chidambaram said if the 15th Lok Sabha is unable to decide on Telangana, it will come up again in the 16th Lok Sabha as well.
Voted or defeated “The Bill has to be either voted or defeated,” he said, urging the parties to desist from creating pandemonium. “The issue will not go away. It was in the 15th Lok Sabha, it will be there in the 16th Lok Sabha, till there is finality. If Parliament does not pass it, the issue will remain,” he said.
BJP, the principal Opposition party, said the Congress members will themselves disrupt the proceedings over Telangana.
Opposition leader Sushma Swaraj said the last two sessions were sacrificed over the issue. The BJP is willing to support the anti-corruption Bills only if the Government assures that the House will function peacefully, she added.
Biju Janata Dal leader Bhartruhari Mahtab said a lame-duck Government should not attempt to pass such Bills now.
“Many of these Bills are three years old. They had 2012 and 2013 to pass these Bills. They did not do it then and want to put the blame on the Opposition for not passing these legislations now,” he said.
Leaders of certain non-Congress, non-BJP parties had an informal meeting ahead of the session. Those leaders are also of the view that the Centre should not be allowed to pass crucial Bills at the eleventh hour.