Parliament Monsoon Session: Productivity among lowest; LS recorded 19 pc business

New Delhi, Aug 13 (PTI) The Monsoon Session of Parliament turned out to be a near washout, more so in terms of debates, with vociferous protests and sloganeering limiting the business of both Houses to a multi-year low.

The government squarely put the blame on the Opposition, mainly the Congress, while the other side held the ruling dispensation responsible for the session-long deadlock and said it was "unprecedented" that neither the prime minister nor the home minister attended the proceedings even once.

While Lok Sabha recorded 19 per cent business, it was 39 per cent in case of Rajya Sabha during the 25-day session, which concluded on Thursday.

As many as 12 bills were passed each in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha during the Monsoon Session, but only one -- the Public Examination (Prevention of Unfair Means) Amendment Bill, 2026 or anti-paper leak legislation -- saw discussions in both Houses.

While Speaker Om Birla did not read out the usual valedictory address in which he highlights the performance and productivity of the House, Rajya Sabha Chairman CP Radhakrishnan expressed "deep concern" over disruptions that "derailed" the business of the Upper House during the session.

The session witnessed acrimonious scenes and sloganeering by the opposition parties which led to daily disruption of proceedings in both Houses as the issue of police action against the students' protests and the alleged theft of donations at Ram temple in Ayodhya reverberated through the four-week period.

Protests by the opposition at the main entrance of Parliament House were witnessed almost daily with the ruling NDA MPs also protesting at the same venue and both sides coming face-to-face in at least two occasions.

In the midst of the session, Dharmendra Pradhan resigned as education minister following mounting pressure from agitating students.

The Congress, the Trinamool Congress, and the Samajwadi Party boycotted the customary tea party hosted by Birla after the House was adjourned sine die. Only DMK leader Kanimozhi attended the traditional get-together.

In Rajya Sabha, however, opposition leaders, including Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and former party chief Sonia Gandhi, attended the tea party hosted by the chairman.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, and several other senior leaders and ministers were present at the tea party in the Speaker's chamber.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju blamed the Congress for "unfairly disrupting" House proceedings during the session and said it was for the first time in the country that the opposition was "running away" from a debate when the government wanted discussion.

Rijiju said the government was not happy as elaborate discussions on key bills could not take place.

"For the first time, we have seen the Opposition running away from debate in Parliament when the government wanted discussions. Congress is solely responsible for unfairly disrupting the proceedings. This is not good for democracy, especially parliamentary democracy," he said, expressing hope that there will be "some changes" in the Opposition's attitude in the next parliamentary session.

Blaming the Congress, the minister said the Opposition MPs now seem to think their job is just to raise slogans and create a ruckus while brandishing placards and banners.

"You can engage in sloganeering anywhere on the streets. Members come to the House after being elected. They come here for debate and discussion. Yet, an atmosphere has been created where Congress MPs believe that their primary task is sloganeering," he alleged.

The Congress, however, claimed that never before had a government been so "scared and rattled" as this government was during the just-concluded session, and accused the BJP leadership of "running away" from Parliament.

The Congress also claimed that opposition unity and solidarity was on full display during the entire duration of the session.

"We walked together on the path we collectively decided," AICC general secretary Jairam Ramesh said while listing out some of the "successes" that the opposition achieved. PTI