"Its just paying back in the same coin". This how the current disruptions in parliament monsoon session could be described. Opposition parties including Congress have been disrupting proceedings of parliament over Pegasus hacking controversy, Covid-19 pandemic and the farmers agitation against the farm laws. Both houses of the parliament have seen regular disruptions from opposition and had to be adjourned repeatedly.
It may be recalled that a minute proceeding of the parliament costs more than Rs. 2.5 lakh or 15 crore an hour. Parliament runs at least for eighty days during sessions in a year. Each day, business in both Houses is conducted for around six hours. If we take into account the total expenditure on Parliament, then each day of an hour proceedings costs nation nearly 90 crore, the then parliament affairs minister Pawan Bansal had revealed in parliament in 2012 when Monsoon Session of the Parliament was almost completely washed out over alleged favoritism in coal block allocations.
Besides, there is huge cost of MP's salary and perks. Each MP gets monthly expense of nearly Rs 270,000 besides R. 2000 on each to attend the Lok Sabha session. MPs get a daily allowance of Rs 2,000 when Parliament is in session.Besides. MPS get perks such as free housing, medical care and telecom facilities.
So, its a colossal loss to the nation if MPS disrupt parliament proceedings. Unfortunately, all political parties are to be blamed. Remember, how the proceedings of the parliament was stalled by the opposition over Telecom scam. BJP was on the forefront in disrupting the proceedings.
It may be noted that the stalemate in Parliament on the telecom scam was the longest-ever in independent India. Then the winter session of Parliament had the longest shutdown of 22 working days of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha over opposition demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee into the 2G spectrum allocation scam.
In 1996, a CBI raid on former Telecom Minister and Congress leader Sukh Ram's residences at Delhi and Mandi and recovery of cash had led to a 13-day uproar in Parliament by the BJP.
The 2G spectrum allocation issue proved to be such a volatile affair that the Lok Sabha could barely function for seven hours and 30 minutes during its total 23 sittings,losing 124 hours and 40 minutes in the just concluded session.
The disruptions occurred over the reports of a presumptive loss of Rs 1.76 lakh crore on account of alleged allocation of spectrum at lower rates.
The parliament was also stalled time and again on Bofor case. The Bofor case had seen many twists and turns ever since the scam came to light in 1986. The Bofors deal, signed in 1986, was believed to be one of primary reasons for the Rajiv Gandhi-led Congress' defeat in the 1989 Lok Sabha elections
The Bofor guns was a major weapons-contract political scandal that occurred between India and Sweden during the 1980s and 1990s, implicating the then prime minister, Rajiv Gandhi, and several other members of the Indian and Swedish governments who were accused of receiving kickbacks from Bofors AB to supply to India 155 mm field howitzer.The scandal related to illegal kickbacks paid in a US$1.4-billion deal between the Swedish arms manufacturer Bofor with the government of India for the sale of 410 field howitzer guns, and a supply contract almost twice that amount. It was the biggest arms deal ever in Sweden, and money marked for development projects was diverted to secure this contract at any cost. The investigations revealed flouting of rules and bypassing of institutions.
The Italian businessman Ottavio Quattrocchi was the main accused. Quattrocchi was a close friend of Sonia Gandhi. The Congress govt had refused to reopen the case. Later, the then prime minister V P Singh-led government barred Bofors from signing any contract with India.
There is an popular idiom," Jisko lage wahi jane peeda kya hai". When Congress was in power, it used to blame BJP for stalling parliament proceedings over issues that could be mutually discussed and now BJP blames Congress for the same. Its just "paying back in the same coin".
(Chander Sharma)
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