New Delhi: The final week of the Monsoon Session of Parliament is poised to be tumultuous. In the Lok Sabha, the No Confidence motion against the government will be taken up, while the Rajya Sabha is expected to witness vigorous debates on the Delhi Services Bill.
Adding to this, attention will be on the Lok Sabha Secretariat on Monday as it reviews the stay granted by the Supreme Court on Rahul Gandhi's conviction in the 'Modi surname' case and deliberates on the revocation of his Parliament membership.
If Rahul Gandhi's disqualification is lifted by the Speaker, the Congress intends for him to be a key spokesperson from the Opposition during the No-Confidence motion debate scheduled for Tuesday.
The Business Advisory Committee of the Lok Sabha has allocated 12 hours for the No-Confidence motion discussion, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi anticipated to respond on Thursday.
The Opposition has been persistent in their protest since the Monsoon Session began on July 20, demanding a statement from Modi regarding the ethnic violence in Manipur that has gripped both Houses.
Last week, the Opposition temporarily suspended their protests in the Lok Sabha to facilitate a discussion on the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amendment) Bill. This Bill aims to replace the Ordinance issued in May after the Supreme Court granted the elected government control over bureaucracy in the city administration.
The Aam Aadmi Party has utilised this contentious Bill as a unifying factor to rally Opposition parties against it in the Rajya Sabha.
While the NDA and INDIA coalitions have nearly balanced numbers in the Rajya Sabha, the fence-sitters have tipped the scale in favour of the BJP-led government. The Lok Sabha passed the Bill on August 3 following a lengthy five-hour debate.
Since the session's commencement on July 20, a total of 20 bills have been cleared by the Houses. The Monsoon session has seen the Lok Sabha passing 15 bills, with 13 of them approved after the no-confidence motion was admitted on July 26.
In the Rajya Sabha, 12 Bills have been passed during the session, and nine Bills have been endorsed by both Houses.
Notably, essential Bills like the Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill, the Biological Diversity (Amendment) Bill, the Multi-State Cooperative Societies (Amendment) Bill, and the Inter-Services Organisations (Command, Control, and Discipline) Bill were approved with minimal discussion.
In the Lok Sabha, the government has listed the Digital Personal Data Protection Bill, 2023; the Anusandhan National Research Foundation Bill, 2023; The Pharmacy (Amendment) Bill, 2023; and the Mediation Bill, 2023 for consideration and passage on Monday.
