The Congress today accused the Union government of bulldozing its way through Parliament in the manner in which the contentious farm bills were passed in the Rajya Sabha, claiming that a division of votes was not allowed since the ruling side did not have the numbers to pass the legislations.
“The government has bulldozed through the opposition in Parliament today. It was in a hurry to pass the anti-farmer laws and not willing to listen to the voice of the farmers or the concerns expressed by the opposition,” said K.C. Venugopal, AICC general secretary in-charge of the organisation.
At a special briefing held to articulate its opposition to the farm bills passed in the Rajya Sabha today, Venugopal said parliamentary procedures and norms were violated as part of a “pre-meditated conspiracy” to pass the controversial legislations.
He said Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha Harivansh first extended the time of the Upper House beyond 1pm without taking a sense of the House. “Our chief whip Jairam Ramesh requested the government that since the discussion is over, the minister can reply tomorrow and the bill can be taken up for passage tomorrow. But the deputy chairman proceeded to take up the bills for passage,” he said.
Venugopal pointed out that the members who had moved resolutions for the bills to be sent to a parliamentary committee for vetting were not taken up for voting. He said the fundamental rights of the members were curtailed.
“The treasury benches came with a pre-fixed mind. They were not ready to listen to either the farmers' woes or the opposition's views. Surprisingly, BJP members were seen whispering into the ears of the deputy chairman,” he said.
As many as 12 opposition parties have moved a no-confidence motion against the Rajya Sabha deputy chairman, protesting against the manner in which the bills were passed.
Responding to the press conference held by senior cabinet members led by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Venugopal said, “We expected a decent reaction from the senior ministers. We were expecting that they would condemn the conduct of the deputy chairman.”
He said that it was ironic that while the government insists that the bills are not anti-farmer in nature, its own cabinet minister has resigned in protest against the legislations and RSS-affiliated farmers' associations are also protesting.
Randeep Surjewala, head of the AICC communications department, said the government did not allow division of votes and the bills were passed by voice vote since it had realised that it did not have the numbers on its side, with even friendly parties opposing the proposed laws.
Senior leader Shaktisinh Gohil criticised the government for putting Rajya Sabha TV on mute mode as the opposition parties protested the passage of the bills. He also said that, in an unprecedented move, marshals were called in, who dealt forcefully with the members. “I come from Gujarat. This is the Modi model,” he said.
