Another 49 Opposition MPs were suspended for the remainder of the Parliament session on Tuesday on the premise of “unruly behaviour”, taking the total of MPs shown the door to 141. The Opposition has been consistently pressing for a debate on the December 13 security breach at the Parliament House when two intruders made their way to the Lok Sabha and released yellow coloured gas from canisters, leaving the government embarrassed.
On the flip side, the treasury benches have accused the suspended MPs of insulting the Lok Sabha Speaker, the Rajya Sabha chairman and the institution of Parliament, also for unruly behaviour and for not following the rules of the House.
The breach of the Parliament is a serious issue, a fact that has been admitted by Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself, and needs a thorough probe, while the government maintained that investigations are on track. The point here is that nothing stops the MPs from seeking a discussion on the floor of the House. Protesting is part of House proceedings and legislators are duty-bound to hold the government accountable and seek answers on policies, the welfare of citizens and even the security of those conducting business in Parliament.
By running away from a debate, an impression is generated that the government is trying to shield its men who have been partly blamed for the breach of the 3-layered security at Parliament. Moreover, suspending 141 members is an unprecedented action that, if seen through a political prism, appears to be a move to clear hurdles in the business of the House, especially since contentious bills are on the agenda.
The Opposition may be red-carded in the House, but the larger question is whether it can hold itself together and upset BJP's applecart at the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections. The INDIA bloc quickly went into a huddle in Delhi and deliberated on a blueprint for a joint campaign, seat-sharing and redrawing strategies. The interesting part is that TMC and AAP endorsed the name of Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge as the prime ministerial face of the Opposition, a decision that has deeper implications, and one that could be a game-changer for the Congress party.
By zeroing down on Kharge as a PM candidate, the Opposition is giving an indication that Rahul Gandhi is not an acceptable face, and this could be an indication of what lies in store for the alliance. Mamata Banerjee and Arvind Kejriwal's decision to back Kharge over their own prime ministerial ambitions is another positive indicator of leaders coming to terms and shedding personal agendas.
Kharge's acceptability could mean a huge positive for the Congress which is struggling to play the big brother’s role since seasoned leaders are showing hesitancy in the Gandhi leadership. Perhaps, the Congress could leverage its sinking fortunes and Kharge could be the all-important glue holding parties together.
The BJP is on a high after winning three crucial States in the recently concluded Assembly elections, and the Modi-Amit Shah juggernaut continues to roll at a ferocious pace. The suspension of MPs shows that the BJP will not leave any stone unturned. The question is whether the INDIA bloc can pull its act together and give the BJP a run for its money.
