Opposition looks to corner government on SIR as Parliament starts today
The Opposition's demand for a debate on electoral rolls may disrupt Parliament's winter session, which begins Monday and includes discussions on various bills.
The Opposition’s insistence on having a debate on the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls might lead to a turbulent winter session of Parliament that commences on Monday and will conclude on December 19. The government, which has listed 10 new bills for introduction during the upcoming session, has decided to hold a discussion on 150 years of Vande Mataram, India’s national song.
In the three meetings held on Sunday—an all-party meet chaired by defence minister Rajnath Singh and the Business Advisory Committee (BAC) meetings of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha — debate on the SIR was the central theme of the Opposition’s demands. While Samajwadi Party lawmaker Ramgopal Yadav warned that House will not be allowed to function without a debate on SIR, other Opposition leaders told the government that it would be the latter’s responsibility if the House does not run, people aware of the matter said.
After the all-party meeting, parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju said: “No leader said that they will not allow the House to run over SIR. On behalf of government, I assure that we will continue to discuss in order to run smoothly. In democracy, there are differences between the parties. Despite differences, the House should not be disturbed to improve productivity.”
According to functionaries, defence minister Singh sought the cooperation of all political parties in smooth conduct of the upcoming session of Parliament.
The Opposition’s plan to seek a debate on SIR — the exercise is currently underway in 12 states and UTs — is seen as its attempt to create a common platform for warring Opposition parties and to showcase its strength despite the disastrous performance in recently concluded assembly elections in Bihar, where SIR was conducted ahead of the polls.
Trinamool Congress (TMC) floor leader in Rajya Sabha Derek O’Brien offered the government a freehand to decide the topic of the debate. “I am giving you three suggestions. It can be ‘Urgent need for further electoral reforms’, ‘Need for electoral reforms’ and ‘Urgent need for strengthening electoral process’,” he said in the BAC meeting of the Rajya Sabha.
The Congress, the largest Opposition party, held its parliamentary strategy meeting on Sunday evening and decided to push for a debate on SIR, national security, pollution, J&K statehood and foreign policy. A senior leader present in the meeting said: “SIR and ‘vote chori’ would be the main issue. We also want a discussion on national security in the context of the Delhi blasts. We will seek a debate on the foreign policy in the background of recent developments in our relationship with the US and Russia.”
In the meeting, leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi reiterated his allegation that the unexpected results in Bihar were due to vote theft. He also alleged that the government has made false claims on security, saying no one has taken responsibility for the Pahalgam terror attack and the Delhi blast. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has called a meeting of Opposition parties on Monday morning to chalk out a strategy.
In the three meetings, almost all parties spoke about the problem of air pollution in the national capital, calling it a pressing issue and seeking a discussion on it. Many parties also raised the issue of labour codes that have been announced.
Several parties, including the Samajwadi Party, demanded a discussion on the functioning of the Election Commission (EC), saying the poll body was not above Parliament. Some leaders pointed out that meeting the poll panel has become “meaningless” as their concerns were not being addressed. At this Janata Dal (United) MP Sanjay Jha said raising the issue of SIR was pointless, claiming the issue had no resonance on the ground in Bihar. He is learnt to have said that Opposition parties missed the chance to raise other political issues as they were so caught up with SIR.
The Telugu Desam Party (TDP), an NDA ally, said the progress being made in the economic sector must be discussed in the upcoming session. Some leaders from the Northeast as well as Punjab also raised the issue of drug menace in the county.
In the upcoming session, the government has listed The Health Security se National Security Cess Bill, 2025 to levy cess on pan masala and gutka products. Another bill will be brought to levy cess on cigarettes. New GST rates for Manipur would be implemented through a new bill and the finance minister will seek supplementary demands for grants.
