With INDIA bloc pulling in different directions, Monsoon Session should be smooth sailing for Modi govt

Economic Times

21-07-2025

PTI Samvidhan Sadan on the eve of the Monsoon session All speculations and claims that a united opposition will effectively corner the government in the month-long monsoon session of Parliament that kicks off today may turn out to be hollow. Though there is ample ammunition with the Opposition to take on the Narendra Modi dispensation, there are ominous signs that it is a divided house and will not be able to put up a cohesive front even on issues like the heinous Pahalgam terror attack, Special Intensive Revision (SIR) and the impeachment motion against Justice Yashwant Varma.
The INDIA bloc had developed fissures soon after the losses in Assembly elections in Maharashtra, Haryana and Delhi. Aam Admi Party has walked out of the alliance while Uddhav Thackeray appears to be doing a rethink. Others do not see eye to eye on several issues. At this point, the appeal of Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi to fight together may go unheeded in this session.
Meanwhile, the government has done its bit to breach the Opposition unity. Even on the matter of intelligence failure in the Pahalgam case and the claim of the US President over two dozen times that he brought about the ceasefire between India and Pakistan, the Opposition is likely to speak in different voices. While sending the parliamentary delegations to various countries was a commendable move- a similar exercise was undertaken after the Kargil war, the composition of the seven groups was a smart one.
The achievement of these seven parliamentary delegations may be debatable but in the process the government has cultivated spokespersons for its cause. Congress leader Shashi Tharoor made waves with his pro-government utterances as leader of the delegation that went to the US. DMK leader Kanimozhi and NCP (SP) member Supriya Sule also led delegations that spoke strongly in favour of India. Others like Priyanka Chaturvedi (SS-UBT), Manish Tewari (Congress), Asadudin Owaisi and Abhishek Banerjee (TMC) were effective as well. The newfound jugalbandi between Tharoor and the Modi government will be on display in this session, though mostly outside the Lok Sabha as Congress may not field him to speak in the House.There is no disputing the fact that on foreign soil these leaders had to bury their political differences with the government and speak for India. However, when the issue comes up for discussion in Parliament, they are likely to reiterate those arguments. The Opposition then would be speaking in different voices, thus blunting the attack on the government.It is worth noting that the delegations were more engaged in 'converting the already converted'. India did not send delegations to neighbouring countries like Sri Lanka, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Myanmar, Mauritius, Maldives, Bhutan, Nepal. Instead countries like Panama, Bahrain, Algeria, Liberia, Congo, Sierra Leone, Guyana, Colombia, Latvia, Slovenia, which do not have much weight and have no influence in South Asia or even the UN, were covered.On the impeachment motion against Justice Varma, all parties are on the same page but the view among some parties that a similar move should be initiated against Justice Shekhar Yadav of the Allahabad High Court for making 'communal' remarks against those opposed to the Uniform Civil Code. No judge has been impeached by Parliament till date and it would be keenly watched if this record is broken.The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) has been opposed vociferously by Congress, RJD, TMC, AIMIM and the Left parties but the parties down south may not be very vocal about it. The government itself is expected to wriggle out with the excuse that the exercise has been undertaken by the Election Commission of India, which is an 'independent' body. The matter is also in the Supreme Court which gives an excuse to the government for not holding a discussion on it.The debate over the three-language formula will not find the Opposition parties from the North going the whole hog in opposing it. Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra and Karnataka have been more vocal on this issue than other states. Congress itself may have divisions within its ranks with members from the cow belt not being opposed to it.Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and his Rajya Sabha counterpart Mallikarjun Kharge have written to the Chair that the promise of full statehood to Jammu and Kashmir should be fulfilled and a Bill to this effect be brought in this session. However, the government is likely to cite the Pahalgam attack to argue that the present condition in the UT is not conducive for it.The INDIA bloc has pulled in different directions on issues and the parties are back to stitching pre-poll alliances as per their need in various states. On most issues, the INDIA bloc parties on dissimilar wavelengths. The most recent example is Rahul Gandhi stating during his visit to Kerala last week that the two main opponents of Congress are the Left and RSS.Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah recently lamented that INDIA bloc leaders have met only once physically after the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. There was a virtual meeting of the top leaders this Saturday to discuss the strategy for the monsoon session but DMK Chief MK Stalin, SP President Akhilesh Yadav and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee did not have the time or the inclination to attend even the zoom discussion and sent their representatives.Abdullah had stated that the NDA partners meet more often than the INDIA bloc.
A joint effort by the INDIA grouping during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections was effective in reducing the BJP to 240 seats from its previous tally of 303. However, with no ideological glue or any other common interest, apart from defeating the BJP and preventing NDA from coming to power, the INDIA parties have been largely waging lone battles. The Bills lined up for this monsoon session are not political and should sail through smoothly, barring perhaps the Manipur Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2025. Since it is a Money Bill, the government does not have to go for a long debate- where the situation in the state would be raked up by the Opposition- on it and will get it passed in the Lok Sabha without much hindrance. Other legislations like The Income Tax Bill, 2025 and Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Bill, 2025 will not face any hurdles. Elevate your knowledge and leadership skills at a cost cheaper than your daily tea. From near bankruptcy to blockbuster drug: How Khorakiwala turned around Wockhardt
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