Parliament Monsoon Session: Parliament's 25-day Monsoon Session concluded on Thursday as both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha were adjourned sine die, bringing an end to a session marked by repeated disruptions and opposition protests. Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju characterised the session as successful in terms of the legislative business, with 12 Bills passed, but termed it unsuccessful from the perspective of debate and discussion.
"The Monsoon Session concluded today. We view it from two perspectives. In terms of business, it was a very successful session; we passed a total of 12 bills. However, from the perspective of debate and discussion, it was not as successful," Rijiju said.
A Breakdown Of House Business
The Monsoon Session was scheduled for 19 sittings, from July 20 to August 20. PRS Legislative Research had listed 28 Bills as pending at the start. By the end of the session, 11 Bills cleared the Lok Sabha without discussion, NDTV reported.
However, the time spent discussing these bills varied significantly. While the Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, aimed at tightening responses to examination malpractice, received about 11 hours of floor debate, several other Bills were rushed through in minutes via voice votes amid Opposition sloganeering:
- MSME Development Amendment Bill: 3 minutes
- Taxation and Other Laws Amendment Bill: 3 minutes
- Registration of Births and Deaths Amendment Bill: 4 minutes
- Supreme Court (Number of Judges) Amendment Bill: 4 minutes
- Kerala (Alteration of Name) Bill: 4 minutes
- Bankers' Books Evidence Bill: 5 minutes
- Mines and Minerals Amendment Bill: 5 minutes
- National Co-operative Development Corporation (Amendment) Bill: Passed in 10 minutes
- Tribunals Reforms Bill: 12 minutes
- Prevention of Insults to National Honour Amendment Bill: 14 minutes
"Only one bill, addressing the issue of paper leaks and unfair means in examinations, underwent a full discussion in the Lok Sabha... The Public Examinations (Prevention of Unfair Means) Act was discussed in both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha," Rijiju said.
Productivity Loss
The session experienced significant time loss due to repeated disruptions and protests by Opposition parties over issues including the NEET-UG paper leak controversy and alleged theft of donations at Ram Temple in Ayodhya, and other issues.
- Lok Sabha: Productivity stood at just 19 per cent of the total allotted time.
- Rajya Sabha Productivity: The Upper House recorded 39 per cent productivity, functioning for a total duration of 37 hours and 49 minutes during the session.
"In the Lok Sabha, we achieved only 19% productivity relative to the total time allotted. In the Rajya Sabha, productivity stood at 39%," he added.
(With Inputs From ANI)