Parliament: Monsoon Session ends a week ahead of schedule due to Covid-19
Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad met President Ram Nath Kovind and requested him to return the Centre’s contentious farm bills.
Both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha were adjourned sine die on Wednesday due to the coronavirus crisis. The Parliament’s Monsoon session was scheduled to continue till October 1.
Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad met President Ram Nath Kovind and requested him to return the Centre’s contentious farm bills.
The upper house passed the Occupational Safety, Health And Working Conditions Code 2020, the Industrial Relations Code 2020 and the Code On Social Security 2020. The bills have already been passed in the Lok Sabha. Proceedings in the Upper House began without Opposition parties, which are protesting against the Centre’s farm bills and the suspension of eight Rajya Sabha members.
Here are the top updates of the day:
10.45 pm: Rajya Sabha passed 15 bills over the last two days, clocking a productivity rate of over 100% despite this being the shortest Monsoon Session.
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Parliament: Monsoon Session ends, Rajya Sabha passes 15 bills in last 2 days amid Opposition boycott
8.55 pm: The Lok Sabha has also been adjourned sine die.
6.55 pm: Union minister Smriti Irani tells ANI that the agriculture bills allow the farmers to trade their produce freely. “[It secures the farmers’ land and ensures that traders have to mandatorily pay farmers within maximum three days,” she adds. “Then, why is the Opposition opposing these bills?”
6.52 pm: In Lok Sabha, BJP MP Rajiv Pratap Rudy says the saffron party will be in power in Bihar when the House meets next time, according to The Hindu. He mentions that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced Rs 1,70,000 crore package for the state.
6.13 pm: Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Ghulam Nabi Azad meets President Ram Nath Kovind to discuss the farm bills, ANI reports. “There was no division of votes, no voice voting. Constitution was undermined in the temple of democracy,” he says. “We [the Opposition] have given a representation to President that Farm Bills have been passed unconstitutionally and that he should return these bills.”
5.12 pm: MPs from Opposition parties stage a protest against the farm bills outside the Parliament.
4.17 pm: The Lok Sabha session will begin at 6 pm, The Hindu reports. This will be the last day of monsoon session.
2.59 pm: Naidu refers to the suspension of eight MPs and calls the incident “unfortunate”. “To protest is the right of the Opposition,” he says, according to The Indian Express. “Any member, for that matter. But how should it be done? The floor of the House is the most effective way, and not through boycott.”
2.56 pm: Rajya Sabha Chairman Venkaiah Naidu says in his valedictory address that the upper house passed 25 bills in 10 sittings.
2.55 pm: The Rajya Sabha also passed the Jammu and Kashmir Official Languages Bill, 2020.
2.51 pm: MPs from the Trinamool Congress and the Telangana Rashtriya Samiti protest against the Centre’s farm bills inside the Parliament premises.
2.13 pm: The Rajya Sabha is adjourned sine die in view of the coronavirus crisis, ANI reports.
2.08 pm: The Rajya Sabha passes the three key labour law reforms bills.
1.05 pm: Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad, the Leader of the Opposition in Rajya Sabha, will meet President Ram Nath Kovind at 5 pm, reports NDTV.
12.59 pm: Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs V Muraleedharan asks for the Rajya Sabha session to be extended till its legislative business is completed. The proposal has been accepted.
12.48 pm: Rajya Sabha takes up discussion the three labour codes passed in the Lok Sabha. Minister of State (Independent Charge) Labour and Employment Santosh Kumar Gangwar is speaking.
12.39 pm: Opposition parties stage joint protests in the Parliament premises over farm bills, reports ANI. The politicians are holding placards of “Save Farmers” and “Save Farmers, Save Workers, Save Democracy”. Among the leaders present are Congress’ Ghulam Nabi Azad, Trinamool Congress’ Derek O’Brien, and Nationalist Congress Party’s Praful Patel.
10.37 am: After deliberations, the Rajya Sabha passes the amendments to the FCRA, according to ANI.
10.15 am: Opposition parties that have boycotted the ongoing Monsoon Session in Rajya Sabha will meet at the office of Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad, who is also the Leader of Opposition in the House. The meeting is expected to focus on strategy on the farm ordinances, reports ANI.
10.10 am: The Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2020 has been taken up for consideration. Chairman Venkaiah Naidu has stipulated an hour’s time for its discussion, according to The Hindu.
Bill to be taken up in Rajya Sabha
- The Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2020.
- The Bilateral Netting of Qualified Financial Contracts Bill, 2020.
- The Appropriation (No.3) Bill, 2020.
- The Appropriation (No.4) Bill, 2020.
Bills to be taken up in Lok Sabha:
- The Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Bill, 2020.
- The Factoring Regulation (Amendment) Bill, 2020.
- The Major Port Authorities Bill, 2020.
10 am: Proceedings have begun in the Rajya Sabha. Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs V Muraleedharan says the Centre has decided to recommend the adjournment of the House sine die, reports The Hindu. However, certain bills will be taken up before it adjourns.