Parliament logjam: The blame game continues

Parliamentary managers of the Central Government and the BJP are claiming that everything will be fine in Parliament soon and it will start running smoothly, but there is least possibility for this. The Congress leaders are apprehensive that the Government itself doesn’t want to run Parliament. In fact, the Congress, TMC, NCP, and the Left want an elaborate discussion on the banking scam and want the PM to give a reply.

The Congress and TMC feel that if the Government had wished so, Parliament would have run smoothly. Earlier too, the Opposition became vociferous, but such adjournments had never happened. The Opposition parties are also saying that the TDP and Shiv Sena, the alliance partners of the NDA, are merely pretending to protest. There are similar sentiments towards the AIADMK too. The Opposition feels that the Government holds the ‘remote control’ of the protest of the TDP, AIADMK, and Shiv Sena, just so the banking scam can be buried.

The truth, however, is different. The TDP and Shiv Sena are opposing the Government under the compulsion of their own domestic politics. The TDP has to give an answer to the people of Andhra Pradesh. Many works are stuck due to shortage of funds and that is why Chandrababu Naidu is pushing for a special status and holding the Central Government responsible for it. Even the YSR Congress is doing the same. The Shiv Sena has to show distance from the BJP to lessen the double anti-incumbency factor. That is why it is highly unlikely that these parties will end their agitation on the request of the floor managers of the Government. If the top level of the NDA becomes active, only then will the issue be solved, or else the logjam might continue.

HOPE FOR WOMEN’S BILL

Most of the activities seen on this year’s International Women’s Day have fuelled the debate that the Women’s Reservation Bill could be passed before next year’s Lok Sabha Elections. Despite continuous logjam in Parliament, almost all parties discussed women’s issues in the Rajya Sabha on March 8, and women MPs from all parties were given a chance to speak. There was a flurry of activity outside Parliament, too. In Rajasthan’s Jhunjhunu, PM Narendra Modi lauded the achievements of women. At the Parliament campus, the Congress, Left, BJP and many regional parties were seen on the same platform, claiming it was high time to pass the Bill.

Sources say PM Modi is in favour of getting the Bill passed, which will give 33 per cent reservation to women. He had given an indication in this regard some time ago. But the then Congress president, Sonia Gandhi, had written a letter and demanded implementation of reservation, which is why it was deferred for some time.

When the Budget Session is over, two or three more sessions will remain before the elections. The Bill could be presented in any of these sessions. It is being said that the Government is considering a reservation within reservation. Lalu Prasad, Mulayam Singh Yadav, and Sharad Yadav had opposed the Bill only due to this reason. They wanted the Bill to have reservation for Dalit women. Some say the countdown for the Bill has begun.

MEENA BACK IN BJP

Around 10 years ago, Kirori Lal Meena left the BJP and joined the Congress, and now he is back again. In 2008, he had left the BJP as he was not happy with the then CM Vasundhara Raje. Later, in the Gehlot Government, his wife Golma Devi had become a minister. Now, Meena is back with the BJP along with his wife, brother, and supporters, and this is significant.

Meena is said to be an opponent of Raje’s, and that is why his comeback has a meaning. After the defeat in the byelections, Meena’s return surely sends a message. Amid Meena’s comeback, another discussion has started: The Central leadership wants Vasundhara and Shivraj Singh Chouhan at the Centre. Though this discussion has been going on for the past four years, in the last two months — after the defeat in Rajasthan and MP bypolls — it has sped up. In both States, the Assembly Elections will be held at the end of the year, where the BJP will have a direct fight with the Congress. If the BJP has to stop the Congress, it has to repeat its old performance. That is why the party’s top leadership has started working out new equations.

DELHI BYPOLL CHURNINGS

Delhi is gearing up for byelections on 20 seats. Though 20 AAP MLAs, who were disqualified by the EC, have knocked on the door of the High Court and a decision is yet to come, all parties are sure that the court won’t turn down the EC’s decision.

Many BJP leaders say that if the Lok Sabha Elections are held earlier, then almost a dozen States will also go into elections along with that, and if it happens, byelections in Delhi should also be held at that time only. But the AAP is not ready for this.

Holding elections on 20 seats at the same time is not simple. In a way, this is a mini Assembly Election which will change the picture of the Assembly and simultaneously change the political scenario of the State. It is being said that the BJP, Congress, and AAP are considering new candidates for all 20 seats. The AAP will not repeat many of its previous MLAs. At the same time, the BJP will not give tickets to its defeated candidates. The Congress is also gearing up to push forward new faces.

At present, in the House of 70 seats, the BJP has only four and the Congress has none. So, both parties are putting all their strength. Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal has made sealing an issue, with an eye on byelections. He is in regular contact with businessmen and is supporting all movements against sealing. Kejriwal is trying to stop the drifting of this vote bank towards the BJP. He is confident that the lower segment of society will not go anywhere and he will add the business class to his fold as well.