New Delhi:
A united Opposition has set the tone for the Budget Session, raising the Lokpal issue in the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday morning and demanding a debate immediately. The government, while assuring the Opposition that it is committed to setting up a strong anti-corruption body, is not ready to discuss the matter now. In a deja vu moment, is Parliament headed towards another Lokpal logjam?
Leader of Opposition Arun Jaitley brought up Lokpal as soon as the Upper House convened this morning. The BJP has made clear that its number one agenda this session is to take up Lokpal from where it had to be abandoned in the winter session. Mr Jaitley said today, "My one question to the government is, what happens to our three amendments and when is this Bill coming?"
Mr Jaitley refused to accept any reassurance from Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal and turned down the offer of another meeting on the issue accusing the government of not doing anything in the two and a half months between the two sessions and then seeking to meet parties when Parliament convened. "The President's address does not say anything on this, you don't say anything," said Mr Jaitley.
He had rare support from the Left's Sitaram Yechury who too demanded that the Lokpal issue be debated immediately.
The Opposition had stalled much of the Winter Session in December on the Lokpal Bill issue. The anti-graft Bill was finally passed by the Lok Sabha in an extended Winter Session last December, but the one day allotted for discussion and voting in the Rajya Sabha was not enough and the government threw up its hands at the midnight hour on December 29, saying there were too many amendments for it to be passed in that session. The Opposition cried foul and has carried over its angst to the Budget Session.
Arun Jaitley gave an early indication of what to expect from an aggressive Opposition when he told NDTV on Sunday, "The last session ended on a terrible note. When the government, in order to avoid a vote in the Rajya Sabha on the amendments to the Lokpal Bill, disturbed the session and had it adjourned. Logically, since they wanted time to consider those amendments. I'm sure they've had more than sufficient time. Logically, therefore, the session must take off from where it ended last time. We want the Lokpal Bill to be taken up first."
The government has said it is committed to passing the Bill this time and has promised to list it for discussion in the second half of the Budget Session, which is not acceptable to the Opposition. A move to seek discussion yesterday, the second day of the session got scuttled by MPs from the south demanding government intervention on the issue of alleged war crimes in Sri Lanka.
For the government, the priority right now is the vote on account and the discussion on the President's address which promises to be a stormy affair with its own allies seeking amendments. The BJP too has sought amendments to the address.
For the Lokpal Bill, the government needs all its allies and parties like the Samajwadi Party and the BSP firmly by its side. It is making many efforts to consolidate the support of its allies, with Mamata Banerjee still proving a tough nut to crack. Mamata Banerjee has assured the government that she will not rock the boat, but Opposition leaders have hinted that they will reach out to her and other UPA allies on the issues like the National Counter Terrorism Centre in the context of federalism. As an ally Ms Banerjee does not have the best record for sticking by the UPA on all issues.
In this session, the government has its hands full. It has to deftly push important legislation and attempt a reform-oriented General Budget with an aggressive Opposition and allies with a populist agenda never failing to remind it of the tenuous majority it has in the Lok Sabha and its lack of numbers in the Rajya Sabha.