Friday afternoons in both Houses of Parliament are set aside for private members' business.
A few hours after Prime Minister Narendra Modi announced "The good news is Parliament is running," at the Hindustan Times Leadership summit on Friday morning, both Houses struggled to complete the quorum to carry out legislative business.
The Lok Sabha was adjourned for half an hour due to lack of quorum, prompting the opposition to criticise the government for not being able to muster the numbers. The Lok Sabha needs a minimum 55 members and the Rajya Sabha 25 to conduct business.
The Lok Sabha was scheduled to meet at 2.15 pm but proceedings did not begin for the lack of numbers. The house was eventually adjourned till 2.45 pm.
"This is not the first time. It happens every week. How serious is this government?" Congress lawmaker K C Venugopal was heard telling the treasury benches. The BJP has 280 members in the House, the Congress 45.
In the Rajya Sabha, a private member bill on excluding certain castes from the Scheduled Castes was about to be put to vote. But, lack of quorum averted the situation.
Vishambhar Prasad Nishad of Samajwadi Party, who had moved the bill, insisted it be put to vote. "If he is not withdrawing, I will have to put it to vote," Deputy Chairman P J Kurien said. Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi pointed to the Chair that the House did not have quorum for voting. There were 21 members present in the Rajya Sabha.
Private members bills being are usually withdrawn after a reply by the government. The last time a private members bill was passed, in the Rajya Sabha in April this year, it was after 45 years.