Despite having the numbers, the government went on the defensive and failed to put the bill to vote.
On a day of high expectations, the Congress goofed up on strategy and allowed the opponents of the Women’s Reservation Bill to stall its passage in the Rajya Sabha and ruin their much-hyped gift to women on International Women’s Day. Despite having the numbers, the government went on the defensive and failed to put the bill to vote; this was a clear indication of apprehension that the acrimony over this issue could open a Pandora’s box for the United Progressive Alliance (UPA).
The vehemence in the opposition from the Samajwadi Party (SP), the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and the Janata Dal (U) was not unexpected. However, the government’s earlier bravado looked to have discounted the possibility of the SP and the RJD withdrawing support just before the voting on the finance bill. In such a situation, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Left parties gunning for it on the fuel price hike, the government will be left struggling for numbers.
The government’s political managers are also perturbed by the erosion of support from among Muslim MPs. Mohammed Adeeb, a Congress-supported parliamentarian from Uttar Pradesh, has made it amply clear that he will oppose the bill. There could be many more dissenting voices muffled under the party whip.
The bill has been deferred for a day but talk in political circles now is that the legislation is once again on its way to the back-burner. The decision to put off the bill came after the SP and the RJD resolved to thwart the bill at all costs and the BJP and the Left insisted on a debate before voting. Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee also made matters difficult by taking a stand against the expulsion of members disrupting the bill’s passage.
The government appeared to lack a cohesive strategy and a back-up plan. “…they should have done their homework. If they had any sense, they should have first got the finance bill passed and then listed the Women’s Reservation Bill,” a senior CPI(M) leader said.
In the Lok Sabha, the RJD has four members and the SP 22. Without their support and that of the 21-member BSP, the number of MPs supporting the UPA government whittles down to 267, leaving it precariously perched.
The government has now laid itself open to the charge that it lost its nerve and never really had the intention to get the bill passed. “In a house where over 200 members out of 245 are supporting the bill, the government loses its nerve… there appears to be a paralysis within the government which has allowed disruptors to rule the roost,” said Arun Jaitley, the leader of the opposition in the Rajya Sabha.
Also, there was no joint strategy meeting with supporters of the bill, like the BJP and the Left, till late on Monday evening.
It is only when the House was repeatedly adjourned and it became evident that it would be difficult to pass the legislation that the prime minister called the Left and the BJP leaders for consultations. “In fact, the government has not approached the opposition for either support or strategy till now,” he added.
The big gainer appears to be the BJP. By promising support, it emboldened the government to try and force the bill through and in the process helped drive a wedge between the secular parties. “This is the first government that is counting its numbers in the first year itself,” said a CPI (M) leader.
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