India’s winter parliamentary session concluded as its least productive in over a year, crippled by escalating tensions between the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the opposition, Bloomberg reports.
The session, marked by repeated adjournments and physical altercations, saw minimal legislative progress and underscored the deepening political polarization in the country.
The clashes culminated in a police complaint filed by the BJP against Rahul Gandhi, leader of the opposition Indian National Congress, following a scuffle on Thursday. The BJP alleges that two of its members were hospitalized as a result. The Congress counters that its members were attacked with sticks by BJP lawmakers while attempting to enter the parliament building.
The session’s dysfunction is largely attributed to the opposition’s increased power following June’s elections, which resulted in the BJP losing its majority in the lower house for the first time in a decade. This empowered the opposition to aggressively push for investigations into various issues, including allegations of bribery against billionaire Gautam Adani, a close ally of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
According to PRS Legislative Research, the lower house functioned for only about 60 hours during the 19-day session, the lowest since July 2023. The upper house fared even worse, clocking just 43.4 hours. Almost no bills were passed, and only two debates took place throughout the three-week period. The opposition further filed a motion of no-confidence against the Chairman of the upper house, Jagdeep Dhankhar, accusing him of bias.
The opposition’s demands included a debate on the US indictment of Adani, the violence in Manipur, and the recent surge in pollution levels. Tensions further escalated this week following comments by Home Minister Amit Shah, which the opposition deemed insulting to lower castes, leading to calls for his resignation.
Despite Prime Minister Modi’s earlier appeal for “healthy debate,” the session was repeatedly disrupted. On Friday, Chairman Dhankhar rebuked the lawmakers for their disruptive behavior, stating that their actions “mock public trust and expectations.”
