Suspecting ‘ploy’, Opp derails govt plan to table Aadhar Bill

At the meeting, sources said, CPM’s Sitaram Yechury argued that priority should be given to discussion on the railway and general budgets next week since this is a budget session. Senior opposition leaders, including Ghulam Nabi Azad, D Raja, Naresh Aggarwal and Tiruchi Shiva, argued in support.

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The Parliament breaks for recess next Wednesday. The discussion on Railway Budget began Thursday; the debate on the general budget is pending. Sources said the opposition leaders argued that they will not allow any Bill to be taken up for discussion arguing that six Bills, including the Real Estate Bill, have already been passed. They said the discussion on the budgets should be finished first.

On the agenda of the Business Advisory Committee was the contentious Aadhar Bill. The opposition has already attacked the government’s plan to introduce it as a money Bill. Yechury is learnt to have argued that it was an attempt to make the Upper House irrelevant. Opposition leaders suspect a ploy behind bringing the Aadhar Bill next week.

“The government is planning to introduce the Aadhar Bill as a money Bill. Parliament breaks for recess on Wednesday. If the Bill is passed by the Lok Sabha on Monday or Tuesday and is introduced in Rajya Sabha on the last day, what will happen? After 14 days, it would be deemed as passed,” a senior opposition leader said.

Yechury had raised the Aadhar Bill issue in the House on Wednesday. He is learnt to have told Deputy Chairman P J Kurien that he had assured him in the House Wednesday that he will ask for certification of the Bill as money Bill. Yechury said it should be first ascertained why the Aadhar Bill is a money Bill.

The government side was represented by Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi and BJP MP Chandan Mitra. Sources said they sought the opposition’s cooperation but the opposition leaders did not budge. The BAC meeting, sources said, ended inconclusively without allocating any time for any Bill next week.