Disrupt or debate? Opposition united on Adani but divided in tactics

Sources said Opposition parties last Thursday, a day after the Budget was presented, had decided unanimously that they would demand a discussion on the Adani affair in Parliament for two days. Senior Opposition leaders agreed that revelations against the Group were serious enough to force the Government for answers.

They agreed to call for an impartial probe but disagreed on the nature of the investigation. The Congress felt there should be a demand for a JPC probe. The Trinamool Congress and Left disagreed and argued that a Supreme Court-monitored probe should be asked for. The parties agreed to disagree — and so demanded both.

It was also decided that the parties would vociferously raise the issue in Parliament for two days, then stage a protest at the Gandhi Statue Monday and participate in the discussion on the President’s Address. This would give all of them an opportunity to raise the Adani issue, and other matters of concern.

But today, when Opposition leaders met in Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge’s chambers, leaders of the AAP, BRS, Samajwadi Party and the RJD said the Opposition should insist for a separate discussion on the Adani affair and not be content with the discussion on the President’s Address.

Sources in the Congress said the party wanted the blockade to end and to participate in the discussion in the afternoon. P Chidambaram, they said, was supposed to speak on behalf of the Congress. “Since some of the parties were of the view that the opposition should continue to insist on a separate discussion…we took a position that let the protest continue for one more day…we wanted to ensure that the Opposition remains united,” a senior Congress leader asserted.

However, some other parties said it was the Congress that was divided. “One section in the Congress feels the Opposition should allow the debate and another favours disruptions. This section wanted a shoulder and they found two (AAP and BRS),” a non-Congress leader said.

Another leader said the Congress deliberately did not take a firm stand as it wanted the street protests it is holding across the country to reflect in Parliament, too.

Some were not amused. “We must use disruption tactically,” an MP said. “The debate on the President’s Address is a good opportunity. It is a 12-hour debate. The BJP and parties friendly to it will speak for three hours maximum. We have nine hours to put across our points. It is not a Bill. We can speak on all issues.”

When contacted, TMC’s Derek O’Brien argued that the Opposition was on the same page when it came to strategy. “When it comes to tactics, there may be some options. But once the strategy is in place, tactics can be worked out,” he said.

Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, meanwhile, hit out at the Government.

“I have been saying for some years that this Government is hum do, humare do…The Government is scared about holding a discussion on Adani in Parliament…There will be every effort…not by the Government but by Modiji..to ensure that there is no discussion in Parliament on Adani…I want a discussion…aur doodh ka doodh aur pani ka pani ho jaye…the corruption running into lakhs and crores that has taken place…the capture of infrastructure that has taken place…let there be a discussion on it and let the country know which power is behind Adani,” Gandhi told reporters.

The Congress continued to pose questions to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

“How did LIC make such a heavy allocation to the risky Adani Group that even private fund managers had steered clear of? Or was this another case of your ‘Mann Ki Banking’ to benefit your cronies?,” Congress communication head Jairam Ramesh asked.

Claiming that the “allegations of fraud and money-laundering against the Adani Group have been known for some time,” he said:…”Did anyone in the Prime Minister’s Office, Ministry of Finance or the LIC itself raise any concerns about these questionable investments? Were such concerns overruled and, if so, by whom?”