Mark Twain once said that "facts are stubborn, but statistics are more pliable." At the end of the seven-day first session of the 18th Lok Sabha, Speaker Om Birla stated that the House had operated at 103% productivity. In recent years, disrupted sittings have overshadowed the quality of debate and discussion, making productivity rather than substantive discourse the norm for assessing Parliament.
The session witnessed an unprecedented filibuster by the Opposition. The Leader of the Opposition (LoP), Rahul Gandhi, was assertive and occasionally flouted norms. The Prime Minister spoke amidst continuous uproar from Opposition MPs, who gathered in the Well of the House and chanted slogans. Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ability to remain composed and deliver his speech amidst the chaos was commendable.
Modi intervened twice while the LoP was addressing the House. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Home Minister Amit Shah, and Agriculture Minister Shivraj Chouhan also intervened to counter the LoP's allegations.
The Expunging Of Remarks
While Speaker Om Birla appeared lenient during the session, he later expunged several parts of the LoP's speech. In this era of live telecasts and digital media, the effectiveness of such a move is limited; they merely ensure that the expunged portions do not become part of the official House record. Rahul Gandhi's response was explicit: "In Modiji's world, truth can be expunged. But in reality, truth can't be expunged."
Typically, MPs rely on notes containing references and talking points when speaking in Parliament. Rahul Gandhi's principal ally, Akhilesh Yadav, who abstained when the LoP spoke on Monday, was seen looking at notes the following day when he criticised the government, just before the Prime Minister responded to the Motion of Thanks to the President.
Rahul Gandhi, on the other hand, did not refer to notes. He displayed images of Lord Shiva and Guru Nanak to bolster his arguments, in clear disregard of rules prohibiting such displays. In social media clips, he again showcased an image of Shiva on Thursday. Apart from his signature T-shirt, Rahul Gandhi now uses props like the Shiva image to emphasise his 'nonconformity'.
Referring to Rahul Gandhi's past allegations that did not stand up to scrutiny and even drew criticism from the Supreme Court, the Prime Minister quoted Tulsidas: "Jhoothahi lena, jhoothahi dena, jhoothahi bhojan, jhooth chabena" (accepting falsehood, spreading falsehood, eating falsehood, chewing falsehood). Interestingly, while quoting Tulsidas, Modi gestured to Akhilesh, who appreciated and echoed the quote along with the Prime Minister.
Modi's Rajya Sabha Address
The following day in the Rajya Sabha, Modi cited the late Samajwadi Party (SP) patriarch Mulayam Singh, who in 2013 had accused Congress of using the CBI and the ED for political harassment. Modi pointed out that cases were filed against Akhilesh upon his entry into politics during the Congress regime. Modi also noted that Congress had won more seats through alliances than on its own, describing the party as a "parasite". Despite the rivalry between the SP and the BJP, Mulayam Singh Yadav had been an admirer of Modi.
In the Rajya Sabha, Modi stated that the cases against Aam Aadmi Party originated from allegations made by the Congress, which is now an ally of AAP. Two days later, Congress spokesperson Jairam Ramesh told PTI that there "doesn't appear to be much scope" for an alliance with AAP in Haryana and Delhi for the assembly polls.
Without naming anyone, Modi attributed the Opposition's stance to 'balak buddhi' (infantile thought). In 1920, Vladimir Illych Lenin had warned against the forces of opportunism with a propensity to create anarchy in his booklet, Left Wing Communism, an Infantile Disorder. The Opposition's filibuster in the Lok Sabha while the Prime Minister spoke was visibly encouraged by the LoP, who, apart from the Speaker and Leader of the House (PM), is a key figure in Parliament. Amidst continuous slogans, there was also a lighter moment when Modi offered a glass of water to MPs standing directly in front of him in the Well. Hibi Eden accepted the glass, drank from it, placed it back on the table in front of the PM, and continued disrupting.
The bedlam caused by the Opposition was somewhat hidden by the official telecast of proceedings on Sansad TV. Videos filmed by BJP MPs inside the House were uploaded by the BJP's media cell on digital platforms the following day. If Sansad TV had captured the unbecoming conduct of the Opposition-MPs reluctant to enter the Well, being prodded or even physically dragged at the behest of the LoP-the state of our Parliament in the 75th year of the Republic would have been starkly highlighted.
The Responsibility To Listen
The PM's reply in the Rajya Sabha initially did not face slogans or disruptions. However, when he questioned Congress's commitment to the Constitution, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge sought to intervene. Vice President Jagdip Dhankar's refusal prompted slogans and a subsequent walkout. Unlike the Lok Sabha, MPs in the Rajya Sabha did not rush into the Well.
In the Lok Sabha, the PM mentioned that despite his return to power, the Opposition's 'ecosystem' was attempting to convince the public that the government had been 'defeated'. As a pre-poll alliance, the NDA secured a clear majority.
The responsibility to listen and enable the optimal functioning of Parliament is intrinsic to the Opposition's right to be heard and assertive. This principle was abandoned during the first session of the 18th Lok Sabha. The people's mandate must not be trivialised thus.
(Shubhabrata Bhattacharya is a retired editor and a public affairs commentator)
Disclaimer: These are the personal opinions of the author