The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) strengthened the Opposition hand in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday by insisting on certain major changes in the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2015. The party insisted on putting its amendments to vote as the government initiated the proceedings for the Bill’s passage.
The BJD is also expected to take a similar position on the Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Bill, 2015, and the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Amendment) Bill, 2015.
As clause-by-clause voting of the Mines and Minerals Bill was put to vote, the BJD not only moved several amendments but also insisted on “division” — proper voting instead of voice vote — five times. Consequently, the passage of the Bill took more than an hour to wrap up as each time a member insisted on “division,” lobbies had to be cleared and the entire process gone through over and over again.
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The Communist Party of India (Marxist) also sought a division as did the Trinamool Congress.
Opposition members maintained that the government “is just going ahead without taking on board our issues for discussion.”
The BJD’s tactical shift to the Opposition camp will not threaten the government in the Lok Sabha but the party’s decision to shed its neutrality — even if it is issue-based — could make law-making more difficult for the NDA in the Rajya Sabha where it is already outnumbered.
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Earlier in the day, the Insurance Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha despite Opposition objecting to its introduction on the ground that the Rajya Sabha had not allowed its withdrawal.
The Congress did not join these parties in speaking out against the introduction but the party voted against the motion to introduce it.