A WEEK BEFORE MONSOON SESSION ENDS.....
By Ruma Dubey
The winning mantra for Modi during the election campaign was the promise of giving the people a “Congress Mukt” government. After 10 years of a mauni PM and a non-working UPA, this promise was like the sight of an oasis to the thirsty desert nomad. But what do we find now – that oasis was a mirage!!!
The Modi Govt has a thumping majority in the Lok Sabha, yet it is Congress which is calling the shots with its 44 MPs. Rajya Sabha was anyway bound to be sticky and that it is proving to be. So where people dreamed that Modi Govt will bring in a fast-action based Sarkar, where Congress will be decimated to becoming a mute spectator, the very same Congress, with its Rahul and Sonia Gandhi holding the Govt and the country to ransom.
The Monsoon session of the Parliament till now has been a washout. The session ends on 13th August so there is hope that maybe, BJP will relent, the PM will break his silence and some compromise could be struck. But right now, things seem to be stuck in a tight jam. So all these tall talks and great dreams of India, were just that- a dream? One can only sigh in resignation and once again wonder where we are headed.
Its really very funny if one can see it with a sense of humour – the same BJP spent 5-7 years creating Parliamentary logjams, not allowing the UPA Govt to function at all, defending its walkout almost every day saying that it was doing its prime duty as a responsible Opposition. Now it’s their turn to experience the same. Funnily enough, these are the almost all the same Bills which were there during the UPA regime and the same Bills are stuck. In fact the “naak” of the BJP, the Land Acquisition Bill is stuck but in all probability, based on the recommendations of the House Committee, what the BJP could ultimately sign on would be the Bill which is similar to what the UPA had proposed. Congress mukt?
What is extremely worrisome is that instead of debating over the Bills, the entire session has turned into a fight of tu-tu and main-main. Just as the FIIs were watching when Modi won, they are watching now also, seeing how even the very able and eloquent Modi has gone quiet. One could not help but wonder why he did not utter a single word and try to end these useless controversies? If taking the nation ahead is the only focus, why not talk and end the matter there? If errant bureaucrats could be made to toe the line, why not action against erring ministers? Does Modiji talk and inspire the crowds only when he goes visiting foreign countries? One could say that it was “too small an issue” for the Prime Minister to talk but then it was so big that it stalled the entire working of the Parliament, wasting taxpayer’s money. Wonder whether the PM seat does that to one- makes the person who sits there into a mauni?
On 8th Dec, there was the grandiose announcement that the Central Govt is creating 500 ready-to-bid projects worth Rs.3 lakh crore. These projects will already come “fitted” with land acquisition, forest clearance and other clearances. And this plan was announced over and above the roll-out of Rs.1.8 lakh crore worth of projects out of Rs.2.8 lakh crore stuck projects. So how do all these projects move if the Parliament just continues with a logjam?
Political analysts say that currently to get Bills passed from the Rajya Sabha, the BJP has three options – eat humble pie, give Congress the mantle of “leader of Opposition” and strike a deal to get some Bills passed. That seems unlikely. Second option – accept the grim situation and go for Joint Sessions to get Bills passed. This will be long and tedious but doable. Third and most likely option – use the good old administrative process to usher in reforms, leaving the contentious Bills for later.
Well, let’s see what happens. We need development and economics to dominate issues. This monsoon holds the promise of being a complete washout; hope the PM breaks his maun or else his eloquent Independence Day speech on 15th August will sound very hollow and false.