The Winter Session was marked by disruptions and political grandstanding, with heated debates on Vande Mataram, while critical issues such as air pollution and national security were kept off the agenda.
Despite sustained Opposition demands, including from Rahul Gandhi, discussions on air quality, the Red Fort blast, farmers’ distress and economic security found no place, even as the government pushed key legislation through both Houses.
Parliament passed several major Bills, including those on civil nuclear energy, insurance laws and the replacement of MGNREGA.
The Winter Session of Parliament wrapped up on December 19 after nearly three turbulent weeks, marked by noise, disruption and ideological posturing. Members sparred loudly over issues ranging from Vande Mataram to alleged voter roll manipulation, while the air pollution crisis, which is choking the Capital, failed to make it to the discussion table.
Despite repeated efforts by Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi to raise the air pollution crisis, the government declined to permit a debate. It also brushed aside demands for a discussion on the recent blast near the Red Fort, which occurred only days before the session began, even as Opposition parties sought a broader examination of national security in the wake of the Delhi incident. The government was accused of hollowing out democratic practice and treating parliamentary convention as optional.
The Congress called for discussions on national security, air quality, the integrity of electoral rolls, agrarian distress, foreign policy and economic security. Farmers, it argued, are denied fair prices, while safeguards against natural disasters remain inadequate. None of these concerns, however, managed to secure meaningful attention on the floor of the House.
Proceedings were repeatedly thrown off course by disruptions, walkouts and shouted protests. Against this backdrop, the Treasury benches pushed legislation through, while the ruling NDA and the Opposition remained entrenched on opposing sides over the Special Intensive Revision of voter lists, the replacement of MGNREGA and environmental concerns that barely cut through the clamour.
Parliament found ample time for an extended debate on Vande Mataram, which is politically convenient, and for a discussion on SIR following sustained Opposition pressure. By contrast, the Lok Sabha was adjourned sine die without taking up the worsening air pollution crisis, an omission as glaring as it was predictable.
The session featured two high-voltage debates, one commemorating 150 years of Vande Mataram and another on election reforms, both unfolding in an atmosphere heavy on rhetoric and light on consensus.
Bills Passed
Both Houses cleared several significant Bills. These included the SHANTI Bill, which opens the civil nuclear sector to private participation, and the Sabka Bima Sabki Raksha Bill amending insurance laws. The contentious VB-G RAM G Bill, which replaces the MGNREGA framework with a new scheme promising 125 days of rural employment, was also passed amid uproar.
Reacting sharply to the passage of the VB-G RAM G Bill, Congress MP Sukhdeo Bhagat accused the BJP of erasing Mahatma Gandhi’s legacy. He alleged that the government’s real motive was to remove Gandhi’s name rather than reform rural employment, adding that the rural economy would bear the cost of this “ideological obsession”.
Among other legislative business, a Bill to establish a higher education regulator was referred to a joint parliamentary committee, while a proposed market securities code was sent to a standing committee for closer examination.
Between December 1 and 19, Parliament passed several Bills, including the Health Security Cess Bill, the National Security Cess Bill, the Central Excise (Amendment) Bill, the SHANTI Bill, the VB-G RAM G Bill and the Sabka Bima Sabki Raksha Bill. Substantial legislative output, then—though not necessarily matched by substantive debate on the issues most pressing outside the House.
Parliament Sine Die
Both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha were adjourned sine die on Friday, December 19,within minutes of assembling on the final day of the session. In the Lok Sabha, Speaker Om Birla brought proceedings to a close shortly after Vande Mataram was played, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in attendance. The abrupt ending came against the backdrop of Opposition protests over the VB-G RAM G Bill.
The Rajya Sabha resumed briefly at 11 am with Vice-President C.P. Radhakrishnan in the Chair. After routine business, he adjourned the House sine die, expressing disapproval of members’ conduct during the previous day’s proceedings, which included protests and the tearing of papers—behaviour he described as unbecoming of the House.
