A parliament session in progress (File photo)
NEW DELHI: The opposition on Saturday hit out at the government over the announcement of the winter session of parliament, saying the average number of sittings has dropped to a record low of 17 days. The session will be held from December 1 to 19, parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju said earlier in the day, adding that president Droupadi Murmu had approved the proposal. Rijiju said the government looked forward to a “constructive and meaningful session” that would strengthen democracy and serve the people’s aspirations. However, opposition leaders alleged that the government was shrinking parliament’s time and was running away from debate on key national issues.
‘Parliament-ophobia’: TMC
Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Derek O’Brien accused the BJP-led Centre of suffering from “Parliament-ophobia”. He said the Modi government was afraid of discussions on unemployment, federalism and the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. “The House will actually just sit for 15 days,” O’Brien said in a post, noting that during the first Lok Sabha in 1952, parliament met for an average of 45 days per session, compared to just 17 days now. He said the average days per session dropped below 20 after 2014, and accused the Centre of avoiding a session around Constitution Day on November 26. “It would have been the perfect occasion for a debate on constitutional values, but who cares about parliament?” he wrote.
Delayed, shortened: Congress
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh also questioned the timing and duration of the session. “It has just been announced that the winter session of parliament will be from December 1 to 19. This is unusually delayed and truncated,” he said in a post on X. Ramesh told ANI that parliament is normally convened between November 20 and December 24. “This time, it’s only 15 days. What is the government running away from?” he asked, adding that sessions are often shortened before elections. He said the opposition planned to raise several issues, including unemployment, economy, the SIR issue, and the Prime Minister’s silence on Donald Trump’s recent mediation claims on India-Pakistan ties.
