Manipur violence casts shadow over Parliament proceedings

Subhasish Mitra (Wide Angle)

The Manipur violence eclipsed the proceedings in both Houses of Parliament ever since the Monsoon session began on July 20, with the opposition demanding a statement from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and a discussion on the situation in the strife-torn northeastern state.

 

The opposition subsequently moved a no-confidence motion against the Modi government to force the prime minister to speak on the Manipur violence.

 

A video of two women being paraded naked by a mob in a Manipur village on May 4 went viral online, triggering nationwide outrage. Seven people have been arrested so far in the case.

 

On Thursday, the government informed the Supreme Court that the probe into the case has been transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

 

The no-confidence motion by the Congress against the Modi government was admitted in Lok Sabha on Wednesday, setting the stage for a showdown between the opposition and treasury benches amid concerted efforts by the anti-BJP bloc to force the Prime Minister to speak on the contentious Manipur issue in Parliament.

 

Admitting the motion moved by Congress MP from Assam Gaurav Gogoi after a head count of 50 members in its support, a mandatory requirement, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla said a date for a discussion on the motion will be decided after consulting the leaders of all parties.

 

As per the convention, once admitted the discussion on the motion has to be held within 10 days. The Monsoon session of Parliament is scheduled to end on August 11.

 

Although this no-confidence motion is bound to fail the numbers test, the opposition bloc Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) leaders argue that they will win the battle of perception by cornering the government on the Manipur issue and forcing Modi to speak on the matter in Parliament.

 

This is the second time that the Modi government is facing a no-confidence motion since 2014. The first no-trust motion against the Modi government in Lok Sabha was moved on July 20, 2018. The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) scored a thumping win with 325 MPs voting against the motion and only 126 supporting it.

 

The Lok Sabha currently has a strength of 543 seats of which five are vacant. The BJP-led NDA has over 330 members, the opposition alliance has over 140 and nearly 60 members belong to parties not aligned to any of the two groups.

 

The opposition parties have been demanding that the Prime Minister should give an elaborate statement in both Houses on why the situation reached this extent in Manipur.

 

More than 160 people have lost their lives and several hundreds have been injured since ethnic violence broke out in Manipur on May 3.

 

A no-confidence motion can be moved by any member of the Lok Sabha. Rule 198 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Lok Sabha specifies the procedure for moving a no-confidence motion. The member has to give a written notice of the motion before 10 am which will be read out by the Speaker in the House.

 

A minimum of 50 members have to support the motion and the Speaker will accordingly announce the date for discussion for the motion. The allotted date has to be within 10 days from the day the motion is accepted. If not, the motion fails and the member who moved the motion has to be informed about it. If the government is not able to prove its majority in the House, it has to resign.

 

The decision to move the motion in Lok Sabha was taken in a meeting attended by opposition MPs in Parliament on Tuesday.

 

The opposition strategy to corner the government on Manipur will continue in the Rajya Sabha as well, an opposition leader said.

 

The opposition has been demanding that Modi make a statement on the Manipur issue in Parliament before a debate on the matter can be taken up, a demand not accepted by the government.

 

With the opposition and treasury bench members not relenting, a logjam has been prevailing in both Houses since the start of the Monsoon session on July 20.

 

Meanwhile, Congress MP Manish Tewari said it is unfortunate that bill after bill is being passed by voice vote in the Lok Sabha without any discussion because of din.

 

"Kaul & Shakhdar Page 772 Practice & Procedure of Parliament is very explicit. 'When the leave of the house to the moving of a motion of 'No confidence' has been granted no substantive motion on Policy matters is to be brought before the house by the government till the motion of no confidence is not disposed off'," Tewari tweeted.

 

"If any substantive motion of policy is barred, obviously legislation also cannot be brought which holds the field for 100 years or more," he said.