At its last sitting, the 16th Lok Sabha passed the Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Bill, 2018 and the Jalianwala Bagh National Memorial (Amendment) Bill, 2018. The Rajya Sabha was adjourned sine die after it passed Bills, including the Interim Budget and Finance Bill for 2019-20 without debate. Chairman M. Venkaiah Naidu, in his customary address at the close of the session, rued that precious time of the House was lost in protests, stalling the proceedings. The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019 and Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2018 aka triple talaq Bill were not taken up.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi took the House on a tour of milestones achieved during the 16th Lok Sabha. He clung on to Samajwadi Party leader Mulayam Singh Yadav's aashirvad . The SP leader said in his speech that he wished Mr. Modi come back as Prime Minister.
Speaker Sumitra Mahajan received all-round praise for her resolute way in conducting the House but without losing her smile. She also made a moving speech.
The CAG report on Rafale was tabled in Parliament today.
Speaker rises for her valedictory address. We should take stock of the work done during the 16th Lok Sabha's tenure, she says. We should also think how much was in the service of the people who gave us the mandate to work for them, she adds. She mentions the departure of former members including Atal Bihari Vajpayee and George Fernandes.
She appreciates the work of Deputy Speaker M. Thambi Durai and panel of chairpersons.
Ms. Mahajan says she tried her best to accommodate questions by parties no matter big or small. She lists out prominent legislations passed under her watch.
She also mentions the No Confidence Motion. And she moves on to stats - number of questions and debates.
Ms. Mahajan makes a special mention for the internship programme for the youth, who can come to Parliament, work for a period and get first hand experience about the workings of our legislature. She says efforts have been taken to make the Lok Sabha Secretariat paperless, and that the Lok Sabha library has been fully digitised. She says she's honoured that Vajpayee's portrait was unveiled in the House during her tenure.
A round of praise for everyone involved. Mulayam Singh gets special mention for his aashirvad .
And then comes apologies for any inadvertent pain caused in the course of the conduct of the House.
Concludes with chant of prayer, repeated by the member. Aap ko school jaisa laga na , she asks?
Time for the National Song. Lok Sabha adjourns sine die.
And thus the 16th Lok Sabha comes to an end.
The Prime Minister rises to speak. Begins his speech giving praise to the “ever-smiling” Speaker.
Says he was a new MP in 2014, doesn't know which was where, and how to navigate the Parliament's corridors.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi speaks in the Lok Sabha on February 13, 2019. Photo: LSTV
PM reels out stats: Eight of 17 sessions of this Lok Sabha had over 100% productivity, overall productivity over 85%; highest number of women members in House and in Cabinet; two top Ministers, Speaker, Lok Sabha Secretary-Genaral are all women; 203 bills out of 219 passed, including the one on curbing black money.
Every member of the House — both ruling and Opposition — should take pride in the work done during the 16th Lok Sabha, he says. The House has contributed a lot in boosting the self-confidence of the nation.
Highest number of satellites launched during the 16th Lok Sabha's tenure, he says.
And all this achievements are due to a full majority government, as the world only recognises a full mandate, he says. India has made huge contribution in terms of humanitarian work, the Prime Minister says.
Unlike his past speeches, the Prime Minister often refers to his notes. Perhaps because his address is full of numbers.
Mr. Modi now takes pride in the House passing the anti-money laundering bill, GST Bill , Aadhaar Bill, the Enemy Properties Bill and the 10% quota Bill. Makes special mention of extending maternity leave to 26 weeks .
He quips that though we have done some damage to the MPs' pockets, we are happy we have rationalised the Parliament canteens prices.
“A lot of people said there would be earthquakes during our tenure. And some also flew some planes. But there were no earthquakes, nor did the planes go any higher,” he says in a veiled reference to the Rafale controversy.
Concludes with a special thanks to Mulayam Singh Yadav. Mr. Yadav gave his blessings for a second term.
House reconvenes for the post lunch session. Valedictory remarks.
K.C. Venugopal (Congress, Alappuzha, Kerala) rises to speak. He makes a case for the Opposition's functioning, and sometimes in an aggressive way.
Congress member K.C. Venugopal speaks in the Lok Sabha on February 13, 2019, the last day of the 16th Lok Sabha. Photo: LSTV
Sudip Bandhyopadhyay (Trinamool, West Bengal) showers praise on Speaker Sumitra Mahajan.
Speaker Sumitra Mahajan presides over the last session of the 16th Lok Sabha on February 13, 2019. Photo: LSTV
Bhartruhari Mahtab (BJD, Odisha) joins his colleagues in praising Ms. Mahajan. She's compassionate, at the same time very resolute, he says.
Anandrao Asul (Maharashtra) speaks. Mr. Modi is present.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi attends House on February 13, 2019, the last day of the 16th Lok Sabha. Photo: LSTV
A.P. Jitender Reddy (TRS, Mahbubnagar, Telangana) speaks.
P. Karunakaran (CPI(M) Kasaragod, Kerala) tells Ms. Mahajan: “You are unable to hide your smile even when you are angry.” He concludes with a request to the Prime Minister to be kinder towards flood-hit Kerala.
Samajwadi Party leader Mulauyam Singh Yadav speaks in the Lok Sabha on February 13, 2019.
Mulayam Singh Yadav (SP, Uttar Pradesh) too has good words for Ms. Mahajan. He too has very good words for the Prime Minister, and wishes his a second term. Mr. Modi acknowledges it with a namaste.
Union Minister Ramvilas Paswan gives a round of praise right from the Speaker to all the Parliamentary staff including the watchmen and the media. Takes the opportunity to wrap up the work done by the NDA government and the Prime Minister.
Union Minister Harsimrat Kaur Badal raises to speak. Praises the PM for things he has done for the Sikh community including karz mafi on Langar, Kartarpur corridor, and for the formation of SIT to probe 1984 anti-Sikh riots. Concludes with mandatory praise on the Speaker.
Former Prime Minister Deve Gowda begins with an appeal to the Chair to not restrict him to three minutes.
Former Prime Minister Deve Gowda speaks in the Lok Sabha on February 13, 2019. Photo: LSTV
He recalls how Mr. Modi persuaded him not to resign from the House. And he has words of praise for Sonia Gandhi for her performance as Opposition leader.
Deputy Speaker Thambidurai rises to speak. Appeals to the Prime Minister for the continuation of cooperative federalism. Thanks party founder MGR and late leader Jayalalithaa for giving him a chance to serve as Deputy Speaker.
Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma replies to the debate . Responds to Shashi Tharoor's criticism on removal of members of the trust. He rejects the criticism on the condition of the light and sound show, saying funds were allotted to revive it.
The Bill has been passed by voice vote.
The House will reconvene at 3 pm after lunch.
Amendments are being taken up for the passing of the Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Bill, 2018 .
N.K. Premachandran (RSP, Kollam, Kerala) makes it a point that his was the last amendment of the 16th Lok Sabha.
Sudip Banerjee (Trinamool, North Kolkata, West Bengal) wants to make some comments. He is allowed. He says chit fund business and the name should be abolished.
Minister moves the Bill. The Bill has been passed as amended.
As per requests to take up the “very small” Jalianwala Bagh National Memorial (Amendment) Bill, 2018, Speaker allows it to be moved. Culture Minister Mahesh Sharma is called to speak.
Shashi Tharoor (Congress, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala) speaks. Mr. Tharoor quotes Madan Mohan Malviya to press his point that the memorial should have been the one to celebrate Hindu-Muslim unity as he recounts the Congress' attempt to memorialise the massacre. He says a BJP Minister's attempt to demean the national movement is condemnable.
He says the provision to remove trustees is wrong, and asks why does the government wants to control a memorial of Hindu-Muslim unity.
It was not BJP blood that was spilled at Jallianwala Bagh, but Indian blood, he says. (Protests from Treasury). He says the government should withdraw the Bill as the govt does not have the right to mark the event as no money was allotted to mark the centenary of the massacre. You are trying to erase history, he charges.
Nishikant Dubey (BJP, Godda, Jharkhand) and Sugata Bose (Trinamool, Jadavpur, West Bengal) have spoken on the Bill.
Bhartruhari Mahtab ( BJD, Cuttack, Odisha) rises to speak. Narrating the impression of his kids during a visit to Jalianwala Bagh , Mr. Mahtab says the museum there has been shabbily maintained. As Mr. Mahtab elaborately recalls the painful events of the massacre, the Chair genly reminds his to conclude.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is in attendance during Mr. Naidu's speech.
Vande Mataram is played. House is adjourned sine die.
Members stand up for the National Song before the Rajya Sabha was adjourned sine die on February 13, 2019. Photo: RSTV
Since the House could not take up the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019 and the Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage) Bill, 2018 aka Triple Talaq Bill , the two legislations passed by the Lok Sabha have now lapsed.
Mr. Goyal has been called to reply. He says out of the total 978 cases of unauthorised deposit schemes, 326 are from West Bengal, which is more than one-third of the total such schemes. “The government has worked quickly to put an end to such unauthorised deposit schemes. We have ensured that no loopholes are left by using great legal acumen while drafting the Bill. I want to assure the House that while drafting the rules we will ensure there is no loophole,” Mr. Goyal says.
House reconvenes. Mr. Naidu takes stock of the House proceedings. Expresses anguish that his appeals to members to not disrupt House proceedings have gone unheeded. Responsibility of keeping the House a performing one lies with the members, he says.
After the SP member's speech, Finance Minister Piyush Goyal is called to introduce the Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Bill, 2018 . Mr. Goyal rakes up chit fund frauds during his speech. | Read: Cabinet approves changes to Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Bill
Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Choudhary is called to speak. He speaks against chit fund fraudsters. BJP member Kirit Somaiya says the Bill has been brought in to protect small investors.
CPI(M) member Mohammed Salim says West Bengal CM has become CM with chit fund fraud money. He says the Left Front govt's bill on such a measure was bulldozed by the Trinamool Congress in collusion with then coalition partner BJP.
G. VenKatesh Babu (AIADMK, Chennai North, Tamil Nadu) seeks an exemption to accept deposits from non-voting members of cooperative societies.
Bhartruhari Mahtab (BJD, Cuttack, Odisha) says the Bill giving more power to police is a matter of concern.
Saugata Roy (Trinamool Congress, West Bengal) says BJP won't want him to speak. (Loud protests). He calls Mr. Choudhary a mafia don. Mr. Roy seeks to recount actions taken by Ms. Banerjee when the Saradha chit fund broke and finds fault with the Union govt over not doing anything till now.
Trinamool members are seen arguing with Mr. Salim and the latter retorting.
As protests continue unabated, Mr. Naidu adjourns the House till 12.30 pm and calls leaders of parties to come and discuss with him on how to proceed.
Statements by Ministers continue amid loud protests by the Opposition.
SP member Dharmendra Yadav is called to speak. He complains of police highhandedness during a party protest yesterday across Uttar Pradesh. Her demands Lok sabha should act against police officials and the Allahabad DM.
House reconvenes. Motion of Thanks on the President's Address and amendments are being presented. Peels of laughter as Mr. Naidu says Congress member Subbarami Reddy deserves a n award for amendments.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister begins with a laudatory note for the government. But as Opposition protests, he just amends his speech to just an appeal to pass the motion.
The Motion of Thanks on the President's Address has been passed by voice vote without discussion.
Finance Bill 2019 and The Appropriation (Vote on Account) Bill 2019 are moved and there won't be a discussion. Bills are passed.
he Personal Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2019 is moved and passed as part of the omnibus passing of bills without discussion.
Ayes have it, Ayes have it, Ayes have it in Mr. Naidu’s voice is the operative phrase of the day.
House reconvenes. Papers are being laid on the table of the House. Slogan shouting and protests from Opposition ranks.
Statements by Ministers. Prakash Javadekar moves a Bill to elect two members to the court of the Aligarh Muslim University. Motion passed by voice vote.
Immediately, protests begin from the Opposition ranks. While Samajwadi Party MPs protests police lathicharge on party leaders and workers in Allahabad on February 12, Trinamool MPs display posters against the BJP government over the Rafale fighter jet deal. Chairman tries once, just only once, to persuade them to go back to their seats. And then he adjourns the House till 12 noon.
Outside the House, Congress chief Rahul Gandhi has stepped up his attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the Rafale issue citing The Hindu ’s report to claim that the PM’s argument of better pricing and faster delivery of the jets to defend the deal has been “demolished“. The report says that the Rafale deal was not on“better terms” than the UPA-era offer .
“The PM defended his personal RAFALE bypass deal on 2 counts: 1. Better Price 2. Faster Delivery. Both have been demolished by the revelations in the Hindu today,” he tweeted.
Before House proceeding began, Congress members led by Mr. Gandhi protested in the Parliament premises over the Rafale issue. UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi and former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh were also present in the protest near the Gandhi statue.
Meanwhile, proceedings are on in the Rajya Sabha. Post laying of papers on the table, department-related committees’ reports and statement are bing tabled.
House convenes for the last sitting of the 16th Lok Sabha. Obituary reference is read out over the death of former member of the House Kunji Lal.
Dharmendra Yadav (SP), whose forehead is seen bandaged, raised the issue of lathicharge by Uttar Pradesh Police on SP workers in Allahabad on February 12. “MPs are being beaten up. Police carried out lathicharge. Our leader (former Uttar Pradesh chief minister) Akhilesh Yadav was detained,” he says.
Ms. Mahajan asks him to raise the matter after Question Hour. After Speaker starts the Question Hour, SP and Trinamool members move into the Well and start sloganeering.
Speaker adjourns the House till noon as slogan shouting continues. Question Hour lasts barely for five minutes.
Lok Sabha schedule:
Bills for Consideration and Passing:
*The Banning of Unregulated Deposit Schemes Bill, 2018
*The Jalianwala Bagh National Memorial (Amendment) Bill,
2018
*The Central Universities (Amendment) Bill, 2018
*The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences
(Amendment) Bill, 2018
Speaker hosts lunch
On February 12, Speaker Sumitra Mahajan hosted leaders of various political parties for a lunch. The lunch was hosted for Ministers, leaders and chief whips of parties in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.
Besides Vice-President M. Venkaiah Naidu, Deputy Speaker M. Thambidurai and Union Ministers like Rajnath Singh, Prakash Javadekar, Maneka Gandhi, Ramvilas Paswan and Harsimrat Kaur Badal, former Prime Minister H. D. Deve Gowda, Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge, Nationalist Congress Party leader Supriya Sule, and Biju Janata Dal’s Bhartruhari Mahtab were among those who attended the lunch.
Session begins. Chairman Venkaiah Naidu in Chair. Obituary references are being read out. And then papers are being laid on the table.
Rajya Sabha schedule:
Bills for introduction:
*The National Institutes of Food Technology,
Entrepreneurship and Management Bill, 2019
Bills for consideration and Passing:
*The Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Bill,
2018.
*The New Delhi International Arbitration Centre Bill,
2019
*The Personal Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2019.
*The Consumer Protection Bill, 2018.
*The Companies (Amendment) Bill, 2019.
*The Aadhaar and Other Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2019.
*The Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) Order (Third
Amendment) Bill, 2019
*The Citizenship (Amendment) Bill, 2019
*The Trafficking of Persons (Prevention, Protection and
Rehabilitation) Bill, 2018
*The Muslim Women (Protection of Rights on Marriage)
Bill, 2018
