Derek O’Brien, a member of the Trinamool Congress (TMC) in the Rajya Sabha, recently shared his thoughts on the current Budget session of Parliament. He believes that a Deputy Speaker may not be appointed this time, just like in the last Lok Sabha, where the position remained unfilled.
O’Brien mentioned that the upcoming news will be mostly about two women: President Droupadi Murmu and Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who will announce the Budget. He pointed out that the TMC has 39% women lawmakers, which is the highest among the six largest political parties in India. In comparison, the Telugu Desam Party has only 6%, BJP has 13%, while the Indian National Congress, DMK, and SP have 14% each.
Commenting on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks about live concerts in India, O’Brien questioned whether discussions will focus more on Coldplay’s concert or the stampede at the Maha Kumbh festival that caused lives to be lost.
He stated it is surprising that despite the BJP’s strong majority in the Lok Sabha, they have not appointed a Deputy Speaker yet. He even made a bold claim that during the current session, the NDA, led by PM Modi, will likely continue this trend.
O’Brien also criticized Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar, who is also the Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, for talking too much in the previous session, taking up nearly 30% of the speaking time. He raised a question about whether Dhankhar would break this record.
This session is also noteworthy because it marks the first time an impeachment motion was filed against the Rajya Sabha Chairman, though it was dismissed for technical reasons. O’Brien teased that we should watch if the Opposition will try to submit another motion.
Finally, he noted that the trend in Parliament has changed, with fewer bills being sent for closer review. In the past Lok Sabha, 7 out of 10 bills were carefully examined, but now it’s down to just 2 out of 10.
O’Brien dismissed rumors about the Waqf Amendment Bill being passed before the upcoming Delhi elections on February 5, explaining that Parliament will be busy discussing other issues until March 6.
Leave a Reply