Amidst the speculations as to why the Parliament Monsoon Session was not yet prorogued, which went sine die in mid-August, sources in the Government indicated that a special session of Parliament to push the Bills related to delimitation and women’s reservation may be resumed by month-end and announced as a festive gift to the women section of the country.
During the Budget Session on April 17, the Modi Government faced a setback as the constitutional amendment bill on delimitation, the implement women’s reservation in the Lok Sabha and State Assemblies, was defeated in the Lower House.
Sources said the ruling BJP is in talks with the DMK, which has 22 MPs, to secure its support for the Bills after it parted ways with the Congress following the recent Assembly debacle of the Congress-DMK alliance. Both the Government functionaries as well as the party are in touch with some other smaller parties to jot down the requisite numbers in Lok Sabha as well as Rajya Sabha.
The President of India has not yet prorogued the Monsoon Session of Parliament, which ended on August 13, as has been the convention for decades.
Flagging the “unprecedented” delay in proroguing the Monsoon Session of Parliament, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to call an all-party meeting to discuss any new delimitation proposals, and cautioned him against any attempts to bulldoze a “far-reaching” Constitutional Amendment Bill.
In a letter to Modi, Kharge said 64 days have already passed since the Monsoon Session was adjourned sine die on August 13, and both Houses of Parliament are yet to be prorogued. All political parties must get sufficient time to deliberate among themselves, with each other and with all the other stakeholders, Kharge said.
Under the arithmetic for a Constitutional amendment, it requires a special majority in Parliament: two-thirds of members present and voting in both Houses. In the current House, the NDA has a majority but not the two-thirds figure of around 360 seats.
The current strength of the Lok Sabha is 540. However, the Government’s position has improved since the last session, as 20 Trinamool MPs and six Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs have switched to the NDA. As talks with the DMK advance, sources said smaller parties like the NCP (Sharad Pawar), with eight Lok Sabha MPs, and some individuals may join the Government and help complete the Government’s overdue mission.