Six months after it was mauled in the Lok Sabha elections , a beleaguered Congress made a belated attempt to pin down the National Democratic Alliance government on Monday with the release of a booklet, detailing how the ruling alliance had gone back on its various poll promises.
However, the belligerence displayed by the Congress at its party headquarters has been at variance with its performance in the current winter session of Parliament where it has failed to provide leadership to the opposition camp. Not only has it made no effort to have floor coordination with other opposition parties, it has been more than happy to play second fiddle to the Trinamool Congress and others even though it is the largest opposition party in both Houses.
Though the Congress is hampered by its lack of numbers in the Lok Sabha, there is no reason why it cannot take the lead in coordinating forces with opposition parties like the Samajwadi Party, the Rashtriya Janata Dal, the Janata Dal (United) and the Left parties who are more than willing to join forces with the grand old party in cornering the National Democratic Alliance government, observers say.
No coherence
“As you can see, there is no coherence in the opposition camp,” a senior Janata Dal (U) leader told Scroll.in. "When the UPA [United Progressive Alliance] government was in power, BJP leaders would meet other opposition party leaders every morning to discuss the issues they could raise together to pin down the ruling dispensation. The Congress has made no such effort so far."
As a result, the Trinamool Congress was at the forefront of protests against the NDA government on the issue of black money last week. Its members blocked the main entrance of Parliament House and then followed it up with a novel protest in the Lok Sabha where it waved black umbrellas with the words "kala dhan" written on them.
Not only did the Congress fail to take the lead on the black money issue, it ended up derailing the opposition protests in the Rajya Sabha when it suddenly raised objections to a recent decision to remove the name of late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi from a part of the airport in Hyderabad while a section has been renamed NT Rama Rao Domestic Terminal.
The lack of unity in the opposition camp was also evident when each party staged separate walk-outs to register their unhappiness with Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s reply to the debate on black money.
With the Bharatiya Janata Party making deep inroads in West Bengal, rattled Trinamool Congress members were again up in arms in both houses of Parliament on Monday when they hit out at the ruling party, alleging that jailed Sahara group chief Subrata Roy’ diary mentioned the name of a senior leader of its party. Parliament witnessed prolonged clashes and a walk-out.
On its part, the Congress raised issues of cotton pricing and renaming of the Hyderabad airport in the Rajya Sabha but these protests were, at best, a formality.
Business as usual
It was business as usual on Monday afternoon with the Rajya Sabha going ahead with the passage of the Merchant Shipping (Amendment) Bill and the Merchant Shipping (Second) Amendment Bill. The Lok Sabha succeeded in passing the Textile Undertakings (Nationalisation) Laws (Amendment and Validation) Bill without a hitch. Pushing ahead with its agenda, the NDA government was able to secure the passage of five bills in the Lok Sabha and two in the Rajya Sabha in the first week of the session.
“When the BJP was in opposition, it never allowed Parliament to function smoothly and ensured no business was transacted,” remarked a senior Congress leader. "Both Houses were constantly disrupted by them. But our party is just not able to put up a fight."
Having been in power for a decade, the Congress is still finding its feet in the opposition camp. Although it did score a point against the government in the monsoon session of Parliament by forcing it to refer the Insurance bill to a parliamentary select committee, the party is now veering around to supporting the bill.
Stalling key bill
The Trinamool Congress, Samajwadi Party, the Janata Dal (U), the Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Left parties have said they will not support this bill. Their intention is to stall and delay it in the select committee to ensure that it does not come up for a vote in the current Parliament session. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is keen on pushing through this bill at the earliest to send out a signal to the global community that economic reforms are on track.
The Congress is faced with a dilemma. With the NDA government resurrecting the UPA government’s stalled bills, it is finding it difficult to oppose these legislations. For instance, when the Labour Laws (Exemption from filing Returns and maintaining Registers by certain Establishments) Amendment Bill were discussed last week, a senior Congress leader wanted to vote against it on the ground that it was “anti-worker”. But he was told they could not stall the bill or vote against it as it was originally prepared by the UPA government. The same argument is being given with regard to the insurance bill which was moved by the UPA government but was stalled by the BJP.
“The problem with our party is that it has not realised that we are a opposition party now,” remarked a frustrated Congress leader.
However, the belligerence displayed by the Congress at its party headquarters has been at variance with its performance in the current winter session of Parliament where it has failed to provide leadership to the opposition camp. Not only has it made no effort to have floor coordination with other opposition parties, it has been more than happy to play second fiddle to the Trinamool Congress and others even though it is the largest opposition party in both Houses.
Though the Congress is hampered by its lack of numbers in the Lok Sabha, there is no reason why it cannot take the lead in coordinating forces with opposition parties like the Samajwadi Party, the Rashtriya Janata Dal, the Janata Dal (United) and the Left parties who are more than willing to join forces with the grand old party in cornering the National Democratic Alliance government, observers say.
No coherence
“As you can see, there is no coherence in the opposition camp,” a senior Janata Dal (U) leader told Scroll.in. "When the UPA [United Progressive Alliance] government was in power, BJP leaders would meet other opposition party leaders every morning to discuss the issues they could raise together to pin down the ruling dispensation. The Congress has made no such effort so far."
As a result, the Trinamool Congress was at the forefront of protests against the NDA government on the issue of black money last week. Its members blocked the main entrance of Parliament House and then followed it up with a novel protest in the Lok Sabha where it waved black umbrellas with the words "kala dhan" written on them.
Not only did the Congress fail to take the lead on the black money issue, it ended up derailing the opposition protests in the Rajya Sabha when it suddenly raised objections to a recent decision to remove the name of late Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi from a part of the airport in Hyderabad while a section has been renamed NT Rama Rao Domestic Terminal.
The lack of unity in the opposition camp was also evident when each party staged separate walk-outs to register their unhappiness with Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s reply to the debate on black money.
With the Bharatiya Janata Party making deep inroads in West Bengal, rattled Trinamool Congress members were again up in arms in both houses of Parliament on Monday when they hit out at the ruling party, alleging that jailed Sahara group chief Subrata Roy’ diary mentioned the name of a senior leader of its party. Parliament witnessed prolonged clashes and a walk-out.
On its part, the Congress raised issues of cotton pricing and renaming of the Hyderabad airport in the Rajya Sabha but these protests were, at best, a formality.
Business as usual
It was business as usual on Monday afternoon with the Rajya Sabha going ahead with the passage of the Merchant Shipping (Amendment) Bill and the Merchant Shipping (Second) Amendment Bill. The Lok Sabha succeeded in passing the Textile Undertakings (Nationalisation) Laws (Amendment and Validation) Bill without a hitch. Pushing ahead with its agenda, the NDA government was able to secure the passage of five bills in the Lok Sabha and two in the Rajya Sabha in the first week of the session.
“When the BJP was in opposition, it never allowed Parliament to function smoothly and ensured no business was transacted,” remarked a senior Congress leader. "Both Houses were constantly disrupted by them. But our party is just not able to put up a fight."
Having been in power for a decade, the Congress is still finding its feet in the opposition camp. Although it did score a point against the government in the monsoon session of Parliament by forcing it to refer the Insurance bill to a parliamentary select committee, the party is now veering around to supporting the bill.
Stalling key bill
The Trinamool Congress, Samajwadi Party, the Janata Dal (U), the Rashtriya Janata Dal and the Left parties have said they will not support this bill. Their intention is to stall and delay it in the select committee to ensure that it does not come up for a vote in the current Parliament session. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is keen on pushing through this bill at the earliest to send out a signal to the global community that economic reforms are on track.
The Congress is faced with a dilemma. With the NDA government resurrecting the UPA government’s stalled bills, it is finding it difficult to oppose these legislations. For instance, when the Labour Laws (Exemption from filing Returns and maintaining Registers by certain Establishments) Amendment Bill were discussed last week, a senior Congress leader wanted to vote against it on the ground that it was “anti-worker”. But he was told they could not stall the bill or vote against it as it was originally prepared by the UPA government. The same argument is being given with regard to the insurance bill which was moved by the UPA government but was stalled by the BJP.
“The problem with our party is that it has not realised that we are a opposition party now,” remarked a frustrated Congress leader.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!