Skip to main content

Winter session ends without passing GST Bill

By
Rajya Sabha passes three Bills while Lok Sabha passes 13
Curtains came down on the winter session of Parliament on Thursday, with the Lok Sabha (where the government has a majority) logging a productivity of 102 per cent. The Rajya Sabha, which faced continuous disruptions, was only half as productive at 50 per cent.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)- led government’s efforts at pushing through the goods and services tax ( GST) Bill came a cropper with the Opposition digging in its heels, asking for specific changes in the Bill.
The Congress disrupted the Upper House and 55 hours were lost over court summons to Congress President Sonia Gandhi and vice- president Rahul Gandhi in the National.
Herald case; the overthrowing of the Arunachal Pradesh chief minister; and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s alleged role in the Delhi & District Cricket Association scam. While the Lok Sabha passed 13 Bills in 20 working days, the Rajya Sabha tried to make up for the lost time by passing three Bills within 30 minutes on the last day. According to PRS Legislative Research, while the Lok Sabha clocked in 115 working hours, the Upper House worked for only 57 hours. In fact, the Rajya Sabha spent only nine hours on legislating while the Question Hour was practically washed out for the entire session.
The hostility between the Treasury benches and the Opposition spilled over from the monsoon session, when the Congress had demanded the resignation of BJP Chief Ministers Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Vasundhara Raje, and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj.
Cutting across party lines, the Opposition demanded a debate on the “ growing intolerance” in the country. The debate took place in the Lok Sabha, but could not take place in the upper House owing to disruptions. Defending itself from criticism of its disruptive tactics in Parliament, Congress leaders questioned the ‘ self goal’ by the government – the raid on Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s office by the Central Bureau of Investigation while probing his principal secretary and the ‘ coup’ on the elected government in Arunachal Pradesh.
The Gauhati High Court “vindicated the Congress stand in its indictment of the Governor”, Congress leaders said.
The winter session was also the first time in its 10 months in office that the government, in a bid to push the GST Bill, reached out to the Congress. Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Sonia Gandhi and former PM Manmohan Singh over tea.
Among the main Bills that were passed are the Negotiable Instruments ( Amendment) Bill; the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes ( Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Bill; and the Juvenile Justice ( Care and Protection of Children) Bill.
Owing to protests by the Congress, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan had to expunge her own “ vested interests” remarks made in the House about protesting Congress members.
Rajya Sabha Chairman Hamid Ansari lamented the loss of business being transacted.
“It reflects adversely on the parliamentary process and our commitment to it. There is an imperative need to dispel this impression,” he said.
The first two days of the session were devoted to commemorating the 125th birth anniversary of B R Ambedkar and a discussion on his contributions.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu attacked the Congress for using its numbers to ‘ paralyse’ the Rajya Sabha. He backed the campaign for redefining the role of the Upper House with the two Houses “ pulling in different directions”.
Naidu accused the Congress of “ cheating the people” by not allowing the government to do “ what is expected of it”.
PARLIAMENT REPORT CARD
  • Negotiable Instruments (Amendment) Bill, |Appropriation Bills
  • The Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Amendment Bill
  • Juvenile Justice ( Care and Protection of Children) Bill
  • Commercial Courts, Commercial Division and Commercial Appellate Division of High Courts Bill
  • Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Bill
  • Atomic Energy (Amendment) Bill,
  • Payment of Bonus (Amendment) Bill
  • Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Bill, 2013 referred to the Select Committee of the Rajya Sabha.
Business Standard, New Delhi, 24th Dec. 2015

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Budget: Startup sector gets new Fund of Funds, FM to allocate Rs 10K cr

By
  The Indian startup sector received a boost with Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman announcing the establishment of a new fund of funds (FoF) in the Budget 2025. The minister unveiled a fresh FoF with an expanded scope, allocating Rs 10,000 crore. The initial fund of funds announced by the government with an investment of Rs 10,000 crore successfully catalysed commitments worth Rs 91,000 crore, the minister said.   “The renewal of the Rs 10,000 crore commitment to the Fund of Funds for alternative investment funds (AIFs) is a significant step forward for the Indian startup and investment ecosystem. The initial Rs 10,000 crore commitment catalysed Rs 91,000 crore in investments, and I fully expect this fresh infusion to attract an additional Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1.5 lakh crore in capital,” said Anirudh Damani, managing partner, Artha Venture Funds.   Damani further added that this initiative will provide much-needed growth capital to early-stage startups, further strengthenin...
Post a Comment
Read more

After RBI rate cut, check latest home loan interest rates of top banks for loans above Rs 75 lakh

By
  The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has reduced the repo rate by 25 basis points from 6.50% to 6.25% in its monetary policy review as announced on February 7, 2025. After the RBI repo rate cut, banks such as SBI, Canara Bank, PNB, and Union Bank among others have cut their repo linked lending rates. Most other banks are also expected to cut their lending rates in line with the RBI rate cut. After banks cut their lending rates, their home loan borrowers will have to pay less interest. Normally, when a lender cuts the lending rate, borrowers get two options: Either to go for a reduction in EMIs or reduce the tenure of the loan. The second option will help the borrowers clear their home loan outstanding faster. In case, the borrower goes for reduction in EMI then the lower lending rate of the lender would mean lower Equated Monthly Installment (EMI) for borrowers.   EMI is the amount you will pay on a specific date each month till the loan is repaid in full.A repo rate-linked home ...
Post a Comment
Read more