New Delhi: As the Winter Session of Parliament was adjourned sine die today, it again exposed the sanctity of Parliamentary discourse. The Session coincided with the 75th anniversary of the Indian Constitution, and it created a precedence when the Opposition parties part of INDI Alliance moved a resolution for the ouster of Vice President of India and Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar in the Upper House of Parliament.
Ten days later, Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh ruled against the no-trust notice, describing it as “an act of impropriety, severely flawed, apparently drawn in haste and hurry to mar the reputation of the incumbent Vice President and aimed to damage the constitutional institution”.
Dhankhar in his valedictory address in Rajya Sabha, quipped, “Samvidhan Sadan was meant to reaffirm democratic values, our actions in this House tell a different story. We face a moment of serious reflection”. He pointed out that the Rajya Sabha session’s productivity was a “mere” 40.03%, with just 43 hours and 27 minutes of effective functioning. The productivity at the Lok Sabha during the session was 54.5 per cent.
“The world watches our democracy, yet we fail our citizens through our conduct. These parliamentary disruptions mock public trust and expectations. Our fundamental duty to serve with diligence lies neglected,” he lamented.
Dhankhar referred to the severe criticism the parliamentarians are drawing from the people of India. Justifying such criticism, he said, “These persistent disruptions are steadily eroding public trust in our democratic institutions while we did pass the Oilfields Amendment Bill and Boilers’ Bill of 2024, and heard the statement by Hon’ble Minister of External Affairs on India-China relations. These achievements are overshadowed by our failures”.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla observed that it is the collective responsibility of all members to maintain the dignity and decorum of Parliament. A day after he banned protests at Parliament gates, Birla today referred to the dharnas outside Parliament and stressed that it is not appropriate to stage “Dharnas” or demonstrations at any of the gates of Parliament. “In case of violation of such norms, Parliament has the right to take necessary action to maintain its decorum and dignity,” he further said. He urged all the members to ensure compliance with the rules under all circumstances.
During the Session, things went ugly when on December 19, 2024, the members of the Opposition and the Ruling Coalition jostled over the alleged insults to the architect of the Indian Constitution BR Ambedkar at the entry gate of Parliament House outside Parliament that caused injuries to two Bharatiya Janata Party MPs who required hospitalisation. A First Information Report (FIR) was lodged with the Delhi Police against Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi for “voluntarily causing grievous hurt, endangering life and personal safety of others and using criminal force”. Gandhi denied the charge and claimed he was trying to go inside the Parliament but BJP MPs were trying to stop him, pushing and threatening him. “This is Parliament and it is our right to go inside,” he stated.
“Where reasoned dialogue should prevail, we witness only chaos. I urge every parliamentarian, regardless of party, to examine their conscience. The citizens of our democracy – one-sixth of humanity – deserve better than this spectacle. We squander precious opportunities that could serve the greater good of our people. I hope Members will introspect deeply, and citizens exercise their accountability. These hallowed chambers deserve conduct that honours our oath, not theatrics that betray it,” Dhankhar said. He emphasised that it is time to choose between meaningful debate and destructive disruption. “Our democratic legacy demands we rise above political differences and restore the sanctity of parliamentary discourse,” he stressed.
The Winter Session of Parliament was held between November 25 and December 20, 2024. Twenty sittings were held during the session which lasted for around sixty-two hours. The Session provided 20 sittings of Lok Sabha and 19 sittings of Rajya Sabha spreading over 26 days.
During the Session, 05 Bills were introduced in Lok Sabha, 04 Bills were passed by Lok Sabha, and 03 Bills were passed by Rajya Sabha. One Bill, “The Bhartiya Vayuyaan Vidheyak, 2024”, was passed by both the Houses during the Session. The Bill seeks to re-enact the Aircraft Act to address the ambiguity owing to insertions/omissions/deletions effected by amendments to the Aircraft Act, 1934, from time to time.
Legislative Business transacted during the Winter Session of Parliament
The first batch of Supplementary Demands for Grants for 2024-25 were discussed and voted in full and the related Appropriation Bill was introduced, discussed and passed by Lok Sabha on December 17, 2024, after a debate of about 07 hours 21 mins. In Lok Sabha, 61 starred questions were answered orally, and a total of 182 Matters of Urgent Public Importance were raised by the Members during the Zero Hour. A total of 397 matters were taken up under Rule 377.
Two landmark Bills namely, (i) The Constitution (One Hundred and Twenty-Ninth) Amendment Bill, 2024 and (ii) The Union Territories Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024 to give effect to the mechanism of simultaneous elections to Lok Sabha and State/Union Territory Assemblies under the vision “One Nation, One Election.” were introduced in Lok Sabha, on December 17, 2024, and got referred to the Joint Parliamentary Committee on December 20, 2024.
As part of a yearlong celebration of the 75th Anniversary of the adoption of the Constitution, a special discussion on the “Glorious journey of 75 years of the Constitution of India” was organized in the Lok Sabha on December 13 and 14 and in the Rajya Sabha on December 16 and 17, 2024. Year-long celebrations were launched under four themes: the Preamble, Know Your Constitution, Making of the Constitution, and Celebrating its Glory on that day. The discussion engaged the Lok Sabha for 15 Hours and 43 Minutes in which 62 Members took part and was replied to by the Prime Minister. In Rajya Sabha, the discussion engaged the House for a total time of 17 Hours 41 Minutes in which 80 Members took part and was replied to by the Home Minister Amit Shah, who, the Opposition accused of insulting Ambedkar. Shah accused the Opposition of selectively distorting his comments.
A special function was held to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the adoption of the Constitution at the Central Hall of Samvidhan Sadan on November 26, 2024, where besides the launch of a commemorative coin and stamp two books titled “Making of the Constitution of India and its Glorious Journey” and “Making of the Constitution of India: A Glimpse” were released by President of India Droupadi Murmu in the presence of Vice- President Dhankhar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Speaker, Lok Sabha, Om Birla, Union Ministers, Leaders of Opposition, Members of Parliament from both Houses and other dignitaries.
– global bihari bureau
