The week-long deadlock in the Rajya Sabha over controversial remarks by Union Minister Sadhvi Niranjan Jyoti ended on Monday following intervention of Chairman Hamid Ansari.
After the Opposition persisted with its demand for passage of a ‘resolution’ on the issue, Ansari adjourned the House and convened an all-party meeting to resolve the crisis.
The meeting was attended by leader of the House Arun Jaitley and Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu and leaders of nine Opposition parties — Congress, Samajwadi Party, Trinamool Congress, Janata Dal (United), BSP, CPI, CPI(M), DMK and NCP. These nine parties have been pressing for a joint resolution condemning the remarks.
With both sides looking for a face-saver to end the crisis, both sides negotiated the text of a “statement” that the Chairman would read out in the House with a formal appeal for allowing the House to function.
After the meeting when the House met, Ansari appealed to all members and political leaders to “maintain civility” at all costs in public discourse. Without naming Jyoti, the Chairman said that everyone, including Ministers, should maintain “civility in public discourse at all costs”.
Both the Government and Opposition camps claimed that the other side was looking for a “face-saver” to end the impasse.
“This House, while acknowledging the statement of the Prime Minister, made on the December 4, appeals to all members of the Parliament, Ministers and leaders of all political parties to maintain civility at all costs in public discourse for the successful functioning of Parliamentary democracy and to uphold our commitment to constitutional values,” the Chairman read.
The statement was prepared at the meeting after tough negotiations. Soon after the Chairman’s statement, the House carried with the scheduled business.
Sources said that the Government wanted the word ‘acknowledging’ in the statement to be replaced by ‘endorsing’ or even ‘appreciating’, but the Opposition rejected this. While the nine Opposition parties were adamant on passage of a joint resolution condemning Jyoti’s remarks, the Government made it clear that there was no question of such a resolution after the Prime Minister’s statement disapproving of the minister’s comments. “I am happy the stalemate is over,” Naidu said.
Earlier, as the House met, Opposition parties, which had been stalling the Rajya Sabha since Tuesday insisted on a resolution condemning hate speeches. The uproar led to four adjournments till the matter was resolved. Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said no resolution can be moved without Chair’s approval.
The two sides indulged in slogan shouting, forcing Deputy Chairman PJ Kurien to adjourn the House till noon soon after it met for the day. After laying of listed papers, Kurien took up Zero Hour submissions, but almost the entire Opposition wanted him to allow Anand Sharma, Deputy leader of Congress in the Rajya Sabha, to speak. Kurien said he was allowing Sharma to speak with a request that Zero Hour be taken up after his submission. “I move the resolution,” Sharma said. Kurien said he had not given him permission to move any resolution.