Parliament special session updates | Lok Sabha, Rajya Sabha adjourned for the day

Concluding today’s debate on 75 years of democracy, Speaker Om Birla reminisces the good and bad memories experienced in the Old building. He also thanks members for a fruitful debate on the issue.

“I expect that we will have many interesting memories in the New building and will take its reputation to new heights. I hope the new building gives you new enthusiasm,” says Mr. Birla.

Lok Sabha has been adjourned till Tuesday, 1:15 PM.

Proceedings will resume on Tuesday, at 2.15 p.m. in the Rajya Sabha chamber of the new Parliament building.

According to Mr. O’Brien, he has 18 minutes to speak. Mr. Dhankhar says he is adjusting time for other members.

Mr. O’Brien raises issues against the current government in his speech themed around the statement “give me back my Parliament”.

Dr. Trivedi also counters LoP Mallikarjun Kharge’s allegations that the G20 logo displayed BJP party’s lotus symbol. “The lotus with five petals, which was featured on the G20 logo, is India’s national flower. The BJP logo is a lotus with eight petals,” he says.

AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi cites 15 instances when democracy was crushed - 1984 Sikh riots, Babri Masjid demolition, 26/11 terror attacks, TADA-POTA laws, AFSPA law, Gujarat riots.

“Parliament is the heart of Indian democracy. Today, Muslims, tribals, SC/ST, poor have lost heart in this Parliament. They believe this is just a building. Muslims representation is so low, we have been reduced to just voters and not law makers. I fear for the destruction of representative democracy in India,” says Owaisi. He concludes proclaiming, “Hope the new Parliament does not become Hitler’s Reichstag”.

Chairman Dhankhar’s statement is a retort to Ms. Chaturvedi’s statement that she is used to speaking for short durations in the Upper House.

Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal condemns the mention of the EU Parliament’s discussion on Manipur crisis in today’s debate. “The tone for today’s debate on 75 years of parliamentary democracy was set by PM Modi and followed by almost all parties except some errant MPs. I request you to expunge these remarks condemning India from record,” says Mr. Goyal

Responding to A Raja, BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad questioned if it would be right to talk about condemning India in the European Parliament as MPs move to a new Parliament. He demands an apology from Mr. Raja for his remarks against Sanatana Dharma.

DMK MP Andimuthu Raja condemns the destruction of constitutional democracy in the past ten years under PM Narendra Modi. Quoting Mr. Modi’s speech against nepotism, corruption and minority appeasement, he claims that it was ill-befitting a Prime Minister.

“We have an ideological war with this BJP government. In the past 10 years, the treasury benches has acted in a diabolical way throughout its term,” says A Raja. Asserting Tamil Nadu’s demand to protect its linguistic, regional independence, he cited many instances when DMK government has supported national integrity. His speech was interrupted repeatedly by the treasury benches, referring to the Sanatana Dharma row.

The issue of N. Chandrababu Naidu’s also comes up during Mr. Reddy’s speech in Rajya Sabha.

This quarrel will not be solved legally, Mr. Devegowda says. “If our friends want smooth understanding (in the matter), we should sit together and sort out the problem. Otherwise, things will continue and both sides will continue to suffer,” he adds.

SAD MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal speaks of the achievements of the Punjabi Sikh community. Citing the 9th Sikh Guru Hind Ki Chadar’s sacrifice for protecting the rights of religious minorities - a Kashmiri Pandit, she claims that this act laid the foundation for human rights 350 years ago. She laments the 1984 Sikh riots, seeking a unanimous condemnation of it in Parliament.

Many intellectual leaders have been part of Parliament but never have we framed laws that scare common people, the MP says.

“It is very dangerous for the nation to have laws that scare the common people,” he adds.

LJSP MP Chirag Paswan lauds the succinct nature in which PM Narendra Modi summarised the 75 years of parliamentary democracy. He demands the passage of women reservation Bill, establishing a National Youth Commission and the National judicial services. He claims that the special session is a bridge of the past parliamentary achievements and the future milestones to be achieved as MPs are moving from Old building to the New Parliament building.

Lauding Telangana CM K Chandrashekhara Rao, BRS MP Nama Nageshwara Rao says that with mere 2 MPs, he demanded the creation of Telangana and in 2014 the AP Reorganisation Bill was passed.

“While PM Modi said that the creation of Telangana has left a bitter taste, Telangana is number one in India in terms of water supply, electrification, medical facilities,” says Mr. Rao. His speech was interrupted by slogans raised by other party MPs from Telangana.

Mr. Siva recalls the story of a woman who fought for Independence with an infant in her arms.

Congress MP Manish Tewari suggests framing a law mandating the Parliament and Vidhan Sabhas of larger states to function for atleast 100 days per year, while Vidhan Sabhas of smaller states function for atleast 55 days. He also suggests a relook at the anti-defection law as it has proved irrelevant in the past few years - referring to the several defections of Congress MPs to BJP. Demanding a discussion on the Chinese intrusion into India at the LAC, he warned that such important issues were being overlooked for debate.

He also lists the several achievements by Parliament in past 75 years including - abolishing untouchability, reservation for SC/ST, Right to Education, Right to Work, Information etc.

In the discussion on 75 years of parliamentary democracy, SP MP Dr. S.T. Hasan laments the incarceration of fellow MP Azam Khan. He claims that his party had approached PM Narendra Modi and the Lok Sabha speaker seeking help in releasing Mr. Khan to no avail. He also condemns the growing intolerance against Muslims citing the objections to Hijab, Azaan, Namaz and Triple Talak. He claims that he fears the marginalisation of the Muslim community.

It is a living institution to be safeguarded for the idea of India, the MP says.

He also recalls stories of Partition as recited by his father and pays homage to his ancestors. “I think Punjab and Punjabis suffered the most (during Partition) - lakhs of people were rendered homeless, and they chose India as their motherland...people built their lives here starting as refugees and this is a sign of their patriotism,” Mr. Sahney says.

“Sikhs are not Indians by chance, we are proud Indians by choice.”

Debate on 75 years of parliamentary democracy continues in the Lower House with Dr. Kirit Solanki in the Chair.

Targetting the previous Congress governments, BSP MP Girish Chandra claims that Jawaharlal Nehru had conspired to defeat Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar in the first election by not supporting him. Listing Dr. Ambedkar’s many achievements, he reminds how Dr. Ambedkar was forced to resign as the Law Minister due to the many hurdles erected by Congress. He demands that no religious sentiments should be hurt, implementation of Mandal commission and 33% women’s reservation.

The next speaker in the Lok Sabha, NCP MP Supriya Sule, demands that the Women’s Reservation Bill be taken up in the new building.

Members on the last day at the now older premises of the parliament expressed their opinion about the functioning of the democracy. Members particularly spoke about democracy and secularism in the country at present.

“You can build mansions and structures but that would not strengthen democracy,” said CPI(M) John Brittas. According to him, democratic procedures must be enriched instead.

On the move to new Parliament, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said the old building is full of memories and history. “It will be a sad moment. Let’s hope that the new building has better facilities, new technology and more convenience for the members of the Parliament… But still, it is always an emotional moment to leave an institution which is so full of history and memories…”

Speaking to news agency ANI, the MP said it was becoming clear that the special session was called by the government to make the shift a memorable moment. “… it is now becoming clear the government wanted to make a special moment out of shifting from one building to another. They have tried to do it in a special way. We can understand the objective there.”

“Before moving from old building to new, we need to understand the true meaning of our country India that is Bharat. We are happy and comfortable with both names.. we want to reiterate this,” says the Trinamool Congress MP.

He adds, “In a parliamentary democracy, the House should belong to the Opposition. Bills are being passed without debate or discussion. It is not a good precedent. Both sides are to be more objective in their approach and outlook.”

He said if the unemployment keeps rising, democracy could be potentially strained. Taking a jibe at the treasury, he said G20 was fine, but something needed to be done on this front as well. He remarked that the Lotus was hiding the ‘0’ in G20 – thus making it unclear if it was “G2”.

Both Union Minister Piyush Goyal and Chair Jagdeep Dhankhar taking note of the remark held that G20 summit must not be demeaned in the manner.

Verbal chaos ensued in the Upper House when Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge that the members from the opposition is not allowed to speak in the house, in general during present times. Chair Jagdeep Dhankhar took exception and remarked that Mr Kharge had laid his attack on the chair.

Opposition leaders held that the chair today was constantly intervening during the LoP’s address.

Questions the government over the nature of the special session, Congress’s Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury asked the Centre why the Question Hour and Zero Hour were removed from the session. He, however, added that while Parliament will move to the new building, the old shall be remembered. Old is gold, he said as he concluded his speech.

Congress Lok Sabha leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury appealed to the government through the Speaker to take up the women’s reservation Bill as Parliament moves to the new building.

The Bill intends to provide 1/3rd reservation for women in the Lok Sabha and State legislatures. The issue was also raised in the all-party meeting called by the government before the session.

(Source:Twitter/SansadTV)

Separately, he held that constitutional values which were earned by much sacrifice and difficulty cannot be compromised just like that. Referring to former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill’s remarks during World War II, questioning India’s ability to uphold democracy, he said that is what the Congress was able to achieve. “They (treasury) ask us often what have we done in seventy years? This is what we have done – strengthening and safeguarding democracy,” he said, adding, “For how long would you continue speaking this same line of thought?” According to him, members from the treasury had nothing else to speak about.

Narrating the constitutional ethos exercised in the parliament, he told the house that former Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru had appointed ideologically opposed academician Shyama Prasad Mukherjee as Minister for Industry and Supply. He also accused the treasury of intimidating opposing leaders with enforcement agencies.

After PM Modi concluded his address to the Lok Sabha, Congress Lok Sabha leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said that last day in the old Parliament building is indeed an emotional moment for all.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the trust of people in the Parliament remains intact. “Many MPs attended the session despite health issues. During the COVID-19 crisis, our MPs attended the proceedings of both of the Houses and performed their duties… With the feeling that India’s growth journey should not be impacted, all the members considered this House as an important part of their duty… After Independence, many critics thought about whether India would remain united or not but we proved all of them wrong... People’s trust in the Parliament remains intact.”

Reading out a self-composed couplet, he sought from the treasury that if they want to change something, it should be condition of the country, not names of institutions. He added that if they want to give, it should be employment opportunities, endowing unemployment will not achieve anything. The Congress President asked the treasury to have a bigger heart, nothing could be achieved by infighting people. “If you cannot help achieving this, then leave your position, what would you achieve by intimidating people,” he stated.

Taking a jibe at the treasury while enumerating the history of universal adult franchise, he said that affluent people like “Adani” and cleaning workers’ exercise the same power with their vote. He added that the provision makes the country’s system “united and inclusive” - something which intimidates the treasury, he stated.

Separately, he held that constitutional values which were earned by much sacrifice and difficulty cannot be compromised just like that.

According to the Union Minister, the abrogation of Article 370 from the Indian constitution extended the rights and privileges enjoyed by the entire country to the people of Jammu and Kashmir as well. He said the event was important in unifying the country. He also referred to the introduction of GST regime, laws against triple talaq,

Mr Goyal also referred to decisions that were taken with total consensus of the house such as the creation of the states of Uttarakhand, Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand. However, the proceedings in the house that led to the creation of the state of Telangana would be etched among the bad memories with respect to parliamentary proceedings. Whilst concluding, he urged the members to pledge that they accord a newer direction for the country’s progress as they move to the new parliamentary building.

“There have been sweet and sour experiences, there has also been an atmosphere of bickering, and sometimes an atmosphere of conflict and sometimes, there has been an atmosphere of joy as well. All these memories are our shared memories, our shared heritage and hence, its pride is also our shared,” says PM Modi in Lok Sabha.

“From Nehru to Shastri to Vajpayee, Parliament has seen several leaders presenting their vision of India,” he adds.

The PM pays homage to the security personnel who laid down their lives while fighting terrorists during the Parliament attack on this day in 2001.

The PM said it is the result of united efforts during the 75 years of the history of Parliament that India’s achievements are being discussed everywhere. “The success of Chandrayaan-3 has not only made India but the world proud. This has highlighted a new form of India’s strength which is connected to technology, science, potential of our scientists and the strength of the 140 crore people in the country. Today, I again want to congratulate our scientists,” he said on the Chandrayaan mission.

The PM also recalled his first time in Parliament and said that when he first entered the building as a member, he’d never imagined that he would get so much love from people.

The Prime Minister said that India’s G20 Summit success is that of entire country and not of one person alone or one party. ​

The Union Minister referring to the recently concluded G20 summit held, that India left a mark on global affairs is a matter of pride to Indians. Enumerating instances of intense debates alongside listing officiating chairpersons in the Upper House, he reminded former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee’s remarks that members work collectively and rise above ideological inclinations for the country’s well-being.

Reminding Prime Minister Modi’s farewell to retired member Ghulam Nabi Azad, the Union Minister expressed hope that the opposition and treasury would keep up with mutual respect. This would also help with increasing the dignity of the house, he held.

The Leader of Opposition of the Upper House Mallikarjun Kharge appealed that two suspended members be reinstated and allowed to participate in the important session.

Addressing the House on Day 1 of the special session, the PM said that the old building will continue to inspire generations.

“It is time to remember inspirational moments associated with this Parliament building before we move to new premises,” the PM Modi said.

The Prime Minister added that India’s G20 Summit success is that of entire country and not of one person alone or one party.

Pointing to historical events in the house from tryst with destiny with the introduction of GST, Chairperson Jagdeep Dhankhar held that there was a decline in the use of wit, humour and sarcasm and acerbic comments during debates. According to him, these are inalienable aspects of health democracy seeking revival of scholarly debates.

Speaking on India’s G20 presidency, the Lok Sabha Speaker says the country emerged as a voice of peace and restraint in the world during the Summit. “PM Narendra Modi’s vision and guidance led to consensus on sensitive issues in the New Delhi Declaration,” the Speaker says.

Chair Jagdeep Dhankhar congratulating Prime Minister Modi on the successful conduct of G20 summit in Delhi said that India stood as a voice of peace and moderation in a world ridden with divisions. He added, the summit delivered on issues pertinent to developing countries as poverty alleviation, debt situations, health security, food security and digital infra development.

Proceedings in the Lower House began at 11 a.m. on Monday. Shortly after the national anthem, leaders from the Oppostion created ruckus. Speaker Om Birla appealed to the members not to disrupt proceedings and assured members that he would order an inquiry into ‘technical fault’.

Ten women parliamentarians shared their memories, messages and experiences of the old Parliament building in handwritten notes as they prepared to bid farewell to the structure ahead of a move into the new complex during the upcoming session. Read Here

Proceedings commence in the upper house with newly inducted member Dinesh Sharma from Uttar Pradesh taking the oath of office.

Chair Jagdeep Dhankhar also extended birthday greetings to member and industrialist Sanjeev Arora

PM Modi said“...India will always be proud that we became the voice of the Global South during the G20 Summit and that the African Union became a permanent member of the G20. All this is a signal of India’s bright future. ‘YashoBhoomi’ an international convention centre was also dedicated to the country yesterday...”

TDP MPs protest against the arrest of former Andhra Pradesh CM and party’s chief N Chandrababu Naidu, near the Gandhi statue on Parliament premises.

PM Narendra Modi said, “This is a short session. MPs maximum time should be devoted (to the Session) in an environment of enthusiasm and excitement.”

Floor leaders of INDIA opposition bloc meet at LoP Mallikarjun Kharge’s chamber in Rajya Sabha ahead of the start of Parliament Special Session. PTI

This session of the Parliament is short but going by the time, it is huge. This is a session of historic decisions. A speciality of this session is that the journey of 75 years is starting from a new destination...Now, while taking forward the journey from a new place...we have to make the country a developed country by 2047. For this, all the decisions of the time to come will be taken in the new Parliament building...” says Prime Minister.

Tomorrow, on Ganesh Chaturthi, we will move to the new Parliament. Lord Ganesha is also known as ‘Vighnaharta’, now there will be no obstacles in the development of the country... ‘Nirvighna roop se saare sapne saare sankalp Bharat paripoorn karega’...This session of Parliament may be short, but it is historic in scope,” said PM Modi