New Delhi: An all-party meeting on Tuesday voiced concern over “erosion of supremacy” of Parliament with demands being made for a change in the mechanism of higher judiciary appointments and a response to the recent Supreme Court judgements on disqualification of legislators and barring those behind bars from contesting elections.
The meeting, convened by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kamal Nath on the eve of Monsoon Session beginning Monday, saw leaders of all parties being also critical of the Supreme Court judgements on the issue of reservations.
After the 90-minute meeting, he told reporters that all parties expressed concern over the judgements and wanted the National Judicial Commission Bill to be introduced as well as passed in this session itself.
Some leaders wanted the government to “respond” to the apex court judgement against reservation in the faculty of AIIMS and the orders relating to disqualification which they felt could lead to vendetta and anarchy.
The session, which concludes on August 30, will have 16 sittings. As many as 44 Bills are planned to be taken up for consideration while six are to be withdrawn and 14 are to be introduced.
Food Security Bill, on which an Ordinance is already in place, is among the proposed legislations.
While the BJP demanded that the Bill on formation of separate Telangana be brought in this session itself for consideration and passage, government said that it will have to follow the legal process under which a resolution is required to be passed by the Andhra Pradesh Assembly.
There was unanimity among political parties in the meeting that government should take requisite measures against the recent Supreme Court judgements.
“How can you expect a smooth session when the Supreme Court has come out with a judgement which has affected 80 per cent of the people belonging to SC, ST and OBC?” asked JD(U) leader Sharad Yadav, who wanted the government to first address the issue in this session.
Asked about the government plans, Kamal Nath said, “We will sit and decide.” The Parliamentary Affairs Minister hoped that this would be a constructive session with parties assuring the government over its smooth functioning.
Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha Arun Jaitley, however, struck a note of caution over the “ambitious” agenda planned by the government for the session, wondering as to how this “near miracle” will be achieved in such a short session which will have only 12 effective sittings for taking up government business.
Sources said while government is keen on getting its financial business done in the short Monsoon Session, BJP-led NDA and the Left parties want to corner the government on issues like floods in Uttarakhand and the state of the economy with rising prices and devaluation of the Rupee.
Several parties said that though they support the issue of Telangana, similar demands for statehood should not be encouraged by the Centre. West Bengal, Maharashtra, Sikkim and Uttar Pradesh are among the states facing demands for formation of new states.
Asked if the Gorkhaland issue was discussed, Sudip Bandopadhyaya (TMC) said, “These issues were broadly discussed. One announcement (Telangana) by the government before the elections has caused tremendous difficulties.”
Finance Minister P Chidambaram and Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde, who is also leader of the Lok Sabha, were among those present in the meeting.
BJP and the Left parties want amendments to the Land Acquisition Bill while TMC is vehemently opposed to it. The Insurance and Pensions Bills may also face opposition.
Deputy Leader of the BJP in Rajya Sabha Ravi Shankar Prasad said his party will also raise the issue of death of children due to Mid-Day meals, Bodhgaya blasts and China’s growing aggressiveness at the border.
Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj said BJP has demanded that government bring the Telangana Bill in this session for consideration and passage.
BJP also wants to raise the Ishrat Jahan encounter issue by seeking a discussion on the reported differences between IB and CBI.
Talking to reporters after the meeting, Basudeb Acharya (CPI-M) said his party is opposed to government move to allow FDI in telecom and defence sectors and will flag these issue during the session. (PTI)