#dnaEdit: Modi government is now forced to refer them to parliamentary panels

With a clear majority in Lok Sabha and the determination to implement reforms to kickstart a sluggish economy, the BJP-led NDA government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi was in a tearing hurry to push through two important bills, which, it believed, would help in turning the economy around. One was the Land Acquisition Bill, and the other the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill. The government introduced amendments to the land bill through an ordinance on December 31, 2014, and introduced the bill when Parliament convened for the Budget session in the last week of February.

The combined opposition became a speed-breaker and forced the government to refer the land bill to a Joint Committee in Lok Sabha, and the GST Bill to the Select Committee of the Rajya Sabha. The government should not see this as a snub.  While the differences over the land bill are quite substantial, in the case of GST it is a procedural wrangle. Congress leaders in Rajya Sabha insisted that the Select Committee should scrutinise the new provisions in the GST legislation. The government has deferred to the demand. 

The NDA brought controversial amendments to the land bill passed by the UPA, and these amendments have been bitterly opposed by even the BJP’s ally, the Shiv Sena. But the BJP was determined to push them through — which it did in the first half of the Budget Session in March this year. It became clear that the government would not be able to have its way in the Rajya Sabha since it did not have the numbers in the Upper House. When Parliament went into recess on March 20, the government prorogued the Rajya Sabha so that it could re-promulgate the ordinance. It placed the re-promulgated ordinance in Lok Sabha when it reconvened on April 20. The bill was introduced again on May 11. Congress and others opposed once again. It was then that Parliamentary Affairs Minister Venkaiah Naidu agreed to the formation of a Joint Committee, which will include members from the two Houses.

Agreeing to the Opposition demand is part of the parliamentary process. The government is sure to feel frustrated because it would delay the implementation of what it considers key changes in laws that escalate the pace of the economy. And the government attempted — till the very end — to win over allies. But it has apparently failed to convince the non-NDA and non-UPA parties like the TMC and BJD to come on board. It would be wrong for either the government to feel it has been snubbed or for the Opposition to feel that it has brought the government to its knees. This would be an unhelpful approach both on the part of the BJP and the Congress.

It is, indeed, a legitimate demand that the two important bills should be subjected to parliamentary scrutiny at the committee level. It is true that it is not mandatory for the government to incorporate changes suggested by the committees, and it can bring back the bills in the old form. But the committees’ recommendations — at least to some extent — should be reflected in the final form of the bills. The Congress seems to be committed to pass the GST bill after the Select Committee gives its recommendations in the Rajya Sabha. But the land bill will remain a contentious piece of legislation. This is the way of democracy. Neither the government nor the Opposition can expect to function unilaterally in Parliament.