Monsoon Session Begins Today: Govt To Push New Bills, Opposition Gears Up For Showdown (X)
New Delhi: The Monsoon Session of Parliament is set to begin on Monday. The country's political landscape has changed significantly since the Budget Session ended in April. The opposition has been weakened by electoral defeats, defections, and the split of the INDIA Bloc (opposition alliance), while the NDA's numbers have increased.
This Parliament session is considered crucial for both the ruling party and the opposition in several ways. While the changing political equations in the Lok Sabha may provide the government with an opportunity to advance some major bills, the opposition has several major issues of public concern to corner the government on this session. The government has listed important bills for the Monsoon Session, including:
Of these, the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill is likely to generate the most political friction between the opposition and the ruling party. The government has stated its objective behind the FCRA Amendment Bill is to ensure transparency and accountability in the use of foreign funding. However, opposition parties allege that the government is introducing this bill to tighten its grip on NGOs and other organizations that receive foreign aid.
Additionally, the government will introduce the Vande Mataram Bill in this session. This bill proposes to grant legal protection to the national song, Vande Mataram, similar to the national flag, the Constitution, and the national anthem, Jana Gana Mana. If passed by Parliament, insulting Vande Mataram, obstructing its singing or playing, or causing a disturbance could result in a punishment of up to three years in prison, a fine, or both.
Following the budget session, the opposition alliance "INDIA Bloc" has suffered several setbacks. The Trinamool Congress suffered a defeat at the hands of the BJP in the West Bengal assembly elections, while the DMK was ousted from power in Tamil Nadu. Following the Bengal election defeat, Mamata Banerjee's party, the TMC, is grappling with internal strife and rebellion. Twenty of the TMC's 28 Lok Sabha MPs have rebelled against the leadership of Mamata Banerjee and her nephew Abhishek Banerjee. These rebel TMC MPs have also announced their support for the NDA in the Lok Sabha
Meanwhile, the Congress-DMK alliance in Tamil Nadu has also broken. Congress contested the assembly elections in alliance with the DMK. Congress was also in alliance with the DMK during MK Stalin's government. However, with the rise of Joseph Vijay and his party, the TVK, in Tamil Nadu, the Congress switched sides. It supported the TVK with its five MLAs.
The DMK is angered by this and has withdrawn from the India Bloc, accusing the Congress of betrayal. Seizing the opportunity, the BJP has attempted to bring the DMK into its fold and appears to be succeeding to some extent. The DMK, which had most vociferously opposed the Delimitation Bill introduced in the Budget Session, is now offering support for it with certain conditions. This stance has given the Narendra Modi government a second chance to pass the Delimitation Bill, linked to the Women's Reservation Bill, in the Monsoon Session. However, this bill is currently not included in the Lok Sabha's agenda for the current session. Meanwhile, the Shiv Sena (UBT) has also seen another split, with six of its nine MPs joining the Eknath Shinde faction, an NDA ally.
The government has not yet introduced any new constitutional amendment bill related to delimitation into the Lok Sabha proceedings. However, it is believed that, given the changing political dynamics, the government is working on a strategy to pass the bill and is also considering making some amendments to the bill to address the concerns of regional parties. The Lok Sabha currently has an effective membership of 540. Passing any constitutional amendment bill requires the support of at least 360 MPs (a two-thirds majority). During the budget session, the delimitation bill received 298 votes in favor and 230 against.
The opposition already has several issues prepared to corner the government in this session. This was evident in the all-party meeting held on Sunday. Opposition parties symbolically walked out of the meeting in protest against the invitation of rebel TMC MPs to the meeting. The opposition is preparing to corner the government in the monsoon session on issues such as the Ram Temple donation theft, the NEET paper leak, and ethanol blending in petrol. Meanwhile, the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) has called for a march to Parliament on Monday demanding the NEET paper leak and the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. This movement has intensified after the forced hospitalization of activist Sonam Wangchuk, who was on an indefinite fast at Jantar Mantar in Delhi, regarding these issues.
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