Who’s responsible for washout of budget session? Opposition MPs blame Modi govt

In a letter to Lok Sabha speaker Sumitra Mahajan, nine members of Parliament (MPs) stated that it was the members of the ruling government who were responsible for the washout of the budget session.

New Delhi, July 18: In a few hours from now, the much-talked about monsoon session of Parliament is all set to start on Wednesday. Ahead of the monsoon session there is a lot of apprehension about the smooth functioning of Parliament because of the ongoing tension in the socio-politico realm of the country.

Moreover, the previous budget session was a complete waste of tax payers' money as parliamentarians hardly worked except for their constant bickerings leading to repeated adjournments of both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha.

While the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has urged all the opposition parties to ensure smooth functioning of Parliament, the Opposition is all set to bring a no-confidence motion against the Narendra Modi government.

Moreover, the opposition parties also want to raise several questions in Parliament on controversial issues like mob lynching, atrocities on Dalits and women, rising unemployment, woes of farmers and backwards, and reservation in higher education institutions.

Looking at all these, it is unlikely that the monsoon session will be anything but a smooth sailing.

The Opposition has also blamed the Centre for the washout of the previous budget session. In a letter to Lok Sabha speaker Sumitra Mahajan, nine members of Parliament (MPs) stated that it was the members of the ruling government who were responsible for the washout of the budget session.

The letter of the MPs was in response to a letter Mahajan had sent them, asking for their cooperation to run the House without any hiccups.

"We were all witness to the disastrous manner in which the notices given by various parties were dealt with, including one given by a party which was till recently a trusted ally of the ruling party," the legislators wrote. "For all your concerns for the image of our Parliament globally, this ignominious chapter in the history of Indian Parliament has no precedent world over."

The Tuesday's letter to the speaker was written by Congress' Mallikarjun Kharge and Jyotiraditya Scindia, Communist Party of India's Mohammad Salim, Nationalist Congress Party's Tariq Anwar, Aam Aadmi Party's Bhagwant Mann, Communist Party of India's CN Jayadevan, PK Kumhalikutty of the Indian Union Muslim League, Dharmendra Yadav of the Samajwadi Party and Jai Prakash Narayan Yadav of the Rashtriya Janata Dal.

Mahajan told reporters after the end of the all-party meeting on Tuesday in the national capital that she had received the letter from the nine MPs.

"I got their letter today in which they have expressed their anguish," she said. "Children often blame others... I take it as a mother... We can always resolve issues and there is no big deal about it."