Newly-elected Vice President C P Radhakrishnan conducted the proceedings of the Rajya Sabha as the Chairman for the first time on Monday, the first day of the Winter Session, but his felicitation turned into a face-off marked with acrimony between the government and the Opposition.
While welcoming Radhakrishnan, member after member from the Opposition benches urged him to be “impartial and fair” and treat them and the Treasury benches equally, in remarks which betrayed their trust deficit.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the House in welcoming the new Chairman, pointing that his rise from a modest, farmer-background family to a key constitutional position was a testament to the strength of Indian democracy. “He has dedicated his entire life to social service. Social service has been his constant path. Politics has been one aspect of it, but the main stream of his life has always been service to society,” Modi said.
“Your vast experience as Chairperson of this House and as Vice President of the nation will continue to inspire us and guide us. I am confident that all the members of this House will carry forward this proud moment with a deep sense of responsibility,” Modi said.
When his turn came, Leader of the Opposition (LoP) Mallikarjun Kharge spoke about the need for the Chair to have a “fair and impartial conduct”, which became the theme of the speeches of almost all Opposition members.
“Fair and impartial conduct of proceedings of the House and providing just opportunity to members of each party, irrespective of the fact whether they belong to the Opposition or Treasury benches, needless to state, is essential for the credibility of this august office,” Kharge said.
The LoP’s remarks about the “unexpected and sudden resignation” of Radhakrishnan’s predecessor Jagdeep Dhankhar during the Monsoon Session and that the House did not get an opportunity to bid him a farewell drew a sharp response from the Treasury benches with Leader of the House J P Nadda and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju hitting back at him.
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Reminding Kharge, LoP in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and the Congress’s Rajya Sabha MP Jairam Ramesh of the “language they had used to disrespect the previous Vice-President”, Rijiju said, “You have (previously) tarnished the Chair and now you are giving gyaan here.”
Nadda said the Opposition’s Bihar, Haryana and Maharashtra losses were frustrating them. “But these issues must be told to a doctor, not in between such a good debate,” he added.
“This is a very solemn occasion. The Prime Minister has made very dignified remarks as part of the felicitation event. Why did the honourable Leader of Opposition refer to a case which was not necessary to be raised at this moment,” Rijiju asked, adding that “The language you used for the former Chairman, the way you insulted him, the motion you served, we still have that copy.”
Kharge and several other Opposition members cited quotes from India’s first V-P and Rajya Sabha Chairman Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan to urge Radhakrishnan to be “impartial”.
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Referring to a 1952 speech of Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, Kharge said, “I consider it apt to quote SVP Radhakrishnan’s acceptance speech on 16 May 1952— ‘I belong to no party’ — why I am saying this is because many people here claim you belong to their party — ‘and that means that I belong to every party in this House. It shall be my endeavour to uphold the traditions, the highest traditions of parliamentary democracy. And, act towards every party with fairness and impartiality, with ill will to none and good will to all. A democracy is likely to degenerate into a tyranny if it does not allow the Opposition groups to criticise fairly, freely, and frankly the policies of the government’.”
In his first address as the Chairman, Radhakrishnan urged the members to uphold the Constitution and follow established norms, emphasising the “Laxman Rekha” of parliamentary conduct. “It is my honour and privilege to serve Bharat Mata. I thank you for electing me as Vice-President of India and Chairman of the Rajya Sabha. As members of the Upper House, our dharma is to work with commitment to fulfil people’s rightful aspirations,” he said.
Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Derek O’Brien asked the Chairman to keep federalism “healthy”, urging him to protect the voices of the states in the Council of States. “Just as the reading of 120/80 can tell a person that their blood pressure is normal, there are certain readings that could speak of the health of parliamentary democracy,” he added.
Pointing out that on an average the parliamentary sittings in every session had come down from 52 in 1952 to 30 in the 1950s and 1960s, the TMC leader said, “Now, it is below 20 days. This session is just 15 days. This reading has to improve. The second parameter is the reading on discussions allowed by the Chair — I have readings from 2009-16. There were 110 discussions allowed. In the last eight years, it has come down to 36 discussions. This is a disturbing number. Also the scrutiny of Bills. At one time, eight Bills would get scrutinised by a Select Committee or Standing Committee, now it is not eight or six but 1.3.”
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CPI(M) MP John Brittas also invoked Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, saying the Opposition must be able to “freely and frankly” criticise the government’s policies to ensure “democracy does not degenerate”. “Please let us at least have our say, they will have their will. We have been deprived of even our say and that is the malady of our time. During the last five years, MPs were suspended in 206 instances across both Houses. Two years back, 146 MPs were suspended and crucial pieces of legislation were passed without the participation of the Opposition,” he said.
Questioning if the Rajya Sabha was fulfilling its role of preventing hasty passage of legislation as envisioned by B R Ambedkar, Brittas said, “Between 2019 and 2024, 34% of Bills were passed with less than one hour of discussion in the Rajya Sabha and 60% were passed with less than two hours of discussion.”
When the NDA MPs objected to Kharge’s mention of Dhankhar’s “unceremonious exit”, Radhakrishnan asked them to sit down. Later, when Brittas was given the floor, he quipped. “One of your first directions was to ask the Treasury benches to sit down. You are going in the right direction.”
Nadda made a specific note of Radhakrishnan’s political leanings, saying “Even though you were born in a Congress family, you attended RSS shakhas… elders in your family argued that they (RSS) are not nice people, they are not nationalists, and you told them, ‘they are nationalists, I have worked with them and seen them closely’.”
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Nadda too Invoked Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, quoting him as saying “In the House, we should behave as responsible members of the Parliament and not irresponsible professional agitators”.
While former PM HD Devegowda expressed confidence that Radhakrishnan, with his vast experience, would uphold constitutional traditions of the Upper House, CPI MP Sandosh Kumar P said “the CP in your name stands for ‘core pracharak’ for certain values and ideas. I hope in the coming days your CP will be for protecting constitutional rights, morals and federal interests of the country, especially at a time when the idea of India is under tremendous attack.”
Shiv Sena MP Priyanka Chaturvedi also hoped that under Radhakrishnan’s guidance, diverse viewpoints will be accommodated in the House.