TMC, SP, AAP refusal to join JPC deepens Centre-Opposition rift

The last 11 years of the BJP-led NDA government have seen both the Centre and the Opposition led by the Congress at loggerheads on several significant policy decisions. However, the current confrontation over the Constitution (130th Amendment) Bill, which the government introduced in Parliament on the second last day of the just-concluded Monsoon Session, seems to be heading towards a serious political logjam.

The Constitutional Amendment Bill, which was introduced in Parliament along with The Jammu & Kashmir Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill and The Government of Union Territories (Amendment) Bill, proposes that a sitting minister, chief minister and even the Prime Minister can lose their position within a month if they are arrested or detained for 30 consecutive days in an offence that carries a jail term of five years or more.

Though the Bills were instantly referred to a joint Parliamentary panel by Union Home Minister Amit Shah, soon after they were introduced in Parliament amid vociferous protests by the Opposition, which called its provisions ‘draconian’ and several members also tore copies of the Constitutional Amendment Bill and threw it on the minister, the refusal by the Trinamool Congress (TMC), Samajwadi Party (SP) and even the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) to nominate any of their MPs to the proposed panel could lead to a serious political stand-off.

As per the Parliamentary norms, all political parties - be it the ruling party or its allies or the Opposition or its partners - nominate their members to a joint Parliamentary committee or a subject-related standing panel, with the idea being that with members from both sides being part of a Parliamentary panel will make its objective more relevant and democratic.

However contentious the subject might have been, joint Parliamentary committee have had members from both ruling and Opposition.

Unlike other Parliamentary panels, joint committees of Parliament are vested with extraordinary powers as they can summon any government official and even call for documents and other proofs pertaining to the subject being scrutinised.

However the blunt refusal of key opposition parties like the TMC, SP and AAP - the first two being key constituents of the INDIA bloc - has put roadblocks over the formation of the joint Parliamentary panel.

Also the refusal by these opposition parties has put pressure on the principal opposition party, the Congress, over not joining the joint panel. Though the Congress has not clearly indicated whether or not it will send its representatives to the joint Parliamentary committee for scrutinising the three Bills, it will be under pressure from its INDIA bloc constituents on boycotting the panel altogether.

If this happens, then it could lead to a crisis-like situation and may make the already thorny relations between the Centre and the Opposition uglier.

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla too has reacted to the logjam, and when asked about the Opposition parties boycotting the joint Parliamentary panel, he cleverly tried to indicate that there have been differences in INDIA bloc over boycotting the JPC.

However, he added that he will try his best to keep the Parliamentary traditions alive and extend his further invitation to Opposition political parties to nominate their members to the panel.

Though it would be interesting to see what future course of action is planned by the Congress and its key INDIA partners like the TMC and the SP regarding joining the panel and whether the two regional parties decide to have a change of heart or not, the key fact remains that joining the panel will give the Opposition an apt platform to register its views against the provisions of the proposed legislations, which it finds controversial or undemocratic.

Completely boycotting the joint panel will lead to a relentless battle of one-upmanship and blame game between the Centre and the Opposition, while putting the main issue of discussing the provisions of the key bills on the backburner.