Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification from Lok Sabha membership and a demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the Adani stock issue remained at the forefront during Parliament proceedings on Tuesday.
Opposition members dressed in black, held placards and raised slogans when proceedings were underway. Both Houses adjourned twice, with very little legislative business transacted in either.
Meanwhile, BJP MPs raised slogans against Rahul Gandhi at the Parliament House in New Delhi. The BJP held a Parliamentary Party meeting today, which also saw Prime Minister Narendra Modi in attendance.
Rahul Gandhi, who has been asked to vacate his official bungalow at 12 Tughlak lane, wrote to the Lok Sabha secretariat that he will abide by its directive without prejudicing his rights.
Lok Sabha
The Lok Sabha adjourned till 2 p.m. almost as soon as it began its proceedings for the day. Once again, Opposition MPs wore black to the House as a mark of protest and threw papers at the Speaker’s table. and raised slogans in the Well of the House
The situation remained largely the same when the Lower House reconvened at 2 p.m, with BJP MP Rama Devi chairing the session. Opposition members held posters saying “Save Democracy” in the well of the House, as papers and reports were laid on the table. They also chanted slogans demanding a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) probe into the Adani stock rout issue and the allegations levelled against the Indian industrialist by a U.S.-based short seller. The Lok Sabha adjourned for the day soon thereafter.
In a written response to the Lower House, Union Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai said that a total of 1,827 Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA) registration certificates have been cancelled in the last five years under section 14 of the Act. The section provides for the cancellation of the certificate of FCRA registration of an association for violations of provisions of the said Act.
In another response, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman informed Lok Sabha that 54 FDI proposals with investor/beneficial owners from China and Hong Kong are pending for decision with the government. The central government had amended the FDI policy in April 2020 to curb opportunistic takeovers/acquisitions of Indian companies due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rajya Sabha
The Upper House kicked off its proceedings at 11 a.m. with Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar felicitating the Indian women who won four gold medals in the World Boxing Championships held recently in New Delhi. The medal-winning athletes are Nikhat Zareen, Lovlina Borgohain, Nitu Ghanghas and Saweety Boora.
Post this, members laid papers and reports on the table as the Opposition protested vociferously, demanding a JPC probe into the Adani issue. MP Anupriya Singh Patel moved that that one Member from the House be nominated as part of the Spices Board, and the resolution was passed, even as the din continued.
Amid continued sloganeering by Opposition members, the House was adjourned till 2 p.m. On resuming, the Chair Mr. Dhankhar announced that the Business Advisory Committee allotted four hours each to discuss the Competition Amendment Bill, 2022- 4 hour and the Inter-services Organisations (Command, Control and Discipline) Bill, 2023. The Committee also unanimously recommended that the sitting on March 31st be cancelled. As Opposition members continued their protests, Mr. Dhankhar adjourned the House till 11 a.m. on Wednesday, within 2 minutes of the House’s reconvening.
In written replies today, Union Finance Minister informed the Rajya Sabha that public sector banks could recover only 14% of written-off loans totalling Rs 7.34 lakh crore in the last five years ending March 2022. Thus, state-owned lenders only recovered Rs 1.03 lakh crore, so that after recovery, net written-off stood at Rs 6.31 lakh crore in the last five years.
Minister of State for Health Bharati Pawar informed the Upper House that India reported 1,317 cases of H3N2 from January 1 to March 21. According to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), of the 510 H3N2 cases reported through ILI/SARI surveillance in the last two months, 19 patients required ICU admission, the minister said in her written reply. The Union Health ministry is monitoring the situation and has issued an advisory to States and Union Territories to track the trend of ILI/SARI in their respective areas, take stock of hospital preparedness and widely disseminate information about seasonal influenza, among other measures.
Proceedings in both Houses will resume at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, March 28.
