As the ruckus is rampant in most parts of the world, the Indian legislatures and the Parliament in New Delhi, in particular, are also not free from its venom. After more than two weeks of turmoil the monsoon session of the Parliament ended without transacting any worthwhile business. The main opposition Hindu fundamentalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had held the Parliament to ransom during which it grilled nonstop the United Progressive Alliance (of which the Congress party is a major constituent) government over “CAG-Coalgate”. It did not allow any business to be transacted. Thus one can well imagine the stature of the so-called nationalist party which never stops proclaiming its patriotic pretensions. While on the one hand the BJP never ceased its protest over the allocation of coal blocks in the states, on the other hand, the government led by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh brought a bill on quotas in promotions for Dalits (lower caste people) and tribal communities, which saw the Samajwadi Party led by Mulayam Singh Yadav (former chief minister of Uttar Pradesh) and Bahujan Samaj Party led by Mayawati, also a former chief minister of the state, locking horns a couple of days ago. The brawl in both houses of Parliament brought the proceedings to a complete standstill. In the Rajya Sabha (upper house), two senior members belonging to these two parties even came to blows, which was, as part of the proceedings, as usual telecast live. One can very well imagine the reaction of general populace watching the episode throughout the country. But this act of introducing the bill on quotas by the ruling alliance even did not satisfy the BJP, which termed it as a diversionary tactic. However, the fate of the bill remained uncertain as there was little time left in the current session that ended Friday. Unhappy over the attitude of the BJP and its allies, Manmohan has rightly said that its “obstructionist politics amounts to total negation of democracy and is hurting efforts to revive growths besides weakening the country.” Unfortunately, for over two-and-a-half years the BJP has been creating scenes in the legislatures and trying to hoodwink the governments in Delhi and in the Congress-run states. As one commentator has rightly put it “the BJP appears to have created a world record in destroying an elected Parliament's time.” He further said that “in terms of the time lost due to disruption (Parliament proceedings) caused by the opposition, again the NDA (National Democratic Alliance led by the BJP) has broken all records. From five percent, 10 percent and 19 percent of time lost due to disruptions in the 11th, 12th and 13th Lok Sabhas, respectively, in the past, we saw a whopping 38 percent of time lost in the 14th Lok Sabha and are on our way to breaking that record in the current Lok Sabha.” And, they did it; another record was set as the Parliament session ended without transacting any business. Already the Parliament has lost hundreds of working hours in the last winter session. It should be noted that BJP's bullying tactics are not new; it is known for its scandalous attacks on the governments in power and its leaves no stone unturned in trying to find fault with them. When the Bofors scandal rocked the Indian politics in the late '80s, the same party along with its allies boycotted both house of Parliament or about 45 days. In recent years, the logjam in Parliament over 2G spectrum and other corruption scams has not only hurt the taxpayer but also brought the legislature to standstill for quite a long time. The lawmakers seem to easily forget the fact that billion of rupees (millions of dollars) are lost in such a wayward style of politics. Unfortunately, we Indians just simply forget the historic oath taken in Parliament on May 13 this year, when the lawmakers commemorated the immense sacrifices made by freedom fighters. That day the lawmakers were celebrating the 60th anniversary of the first sitting of Parliament on May 13, 1952. After a daylong sitting, they all had pledged to “uphold and maintain the dignity and sanctity of both houses of Parliament and make the Parliament an effective instrument of change and strengthen democratic values and principles”. And it was all welcomed by thumping of desks in the legislature. How unfortunate it is to see the same “pledge and resolve” going down the drain in just a little over three months' time!
— Syed Liyaquat Husain is a political commentator based in New Delhi.
