WEDNESDAY will be Day 2 of the no-confidence motion by the Opposition against the Narendra Modi government, with aggressive attacks on Tuesday from both sides setting the stage. Liz Mathew, Manoj C G and Deeptiman Tiwary captured the drama of the first day of the 16-hour debate, with Opposition parties also straying into state-specific issues besides Manipur, and the BJP and allies using the occasion to list PM Modi's achievements. One of the big questions on Tuesday was why Rahul Gandhi did not start the debate from the Opposition side, a day after his return to Parliament as MP. One of the grounds on which the Congress had sought Rahul's early reinstatement as MP – following the Supreme Court's stay on his conviction in a defamation case – was that they wanted him to participate in the no-trust motion. Manoj & Liz reported that the Congress ranks were as clueless as others as to why Rahul did not open the no-confidence debate, after the Congress had shared his name as the first speaker earlier in the day. The BJP, of course, did not lose the opportunity to turn the knife in. As for Day 2 of the no-confidence debate, Rahul is likely to be away for a large part of it, addressing a rally in Mangarh Dham of Rajasthan's Banswara district on Wednesday afternoon. Congress leaders are touting the meeting as the kick-off of the party's campaign for the state Assembly polls later this year, with top party leaders overseeing the arrangements and Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot expected to attend. The setting and the date would otherwise be fitting – Mangarh Dham, located near the Rajasthan-Gujarat border, and not far away from poll-bound Madhya Pradesh, is a historic place where hundreds of tribal people were killed in firing by the British in 1913, while August 9 marks World Tribal Day. However, it can be argued that Rahul would have served the Congress cause better by lending his weight to the no-trust debate that his party fought so hard for. In another poll-bound state, Chhattisgarh, also, World Tribal Day will see political flexing, with the newly minted Sarva Adivasi Samaj planning a public meeting in Raipur, along with a procession. Jayprakash S Naidu has been writing about the growing influence of this tribal body, headed by estranged senior Congress leader Arvind Netam, which claims to represent 42 tribal groups and over 70 lakh people across the state. In May, the Sarva Adivasi Samaj announced plans for a political party, which would contest 50 of the 90 Assembly seats in the state, including all the 29 ST-reserved constituencies. Tribals are also on the mind of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who began a three-day trip to tribal-dominated Jhargram on Tuesday. The CM is scheduled to announce state-wide celebrations to mark World Tribal Day Wednesday, meet Kurmi representatives, and hold a public rally. Away from the Parliament floor, Manipur is bracing for another tense day Wednesday, with rallies proposed in Naga-inhabited areas by the United Naga Council (UNC), to press for conclusion of the peace talks with the Modi government, based on the much-touted Framework Agreement. The UNC, an influential Naga body, has urged all Nagas to participate in the rallies, to be held in the headquarters of Tamenglong, Senapati, Ukhrul and Chandel districts. Another powerful Naga body, civic outfit Naga Hoho, has asked the 10 Naga MLAs in Manipur not to attend the proposed Assembly session from August 21, claiming that the Manipur government is working against peace talks with Naga groups. The Nagas have so far stayed away from the Manipur conflict, involving the Kuki tribals and the dominant Meitei community, that began just over three months ago. While the violence in Nuh in the National Capital Region barely figured in the no-confidence debate in Parliament – despite some expectations – it remains a battleground for political parties given the rising heat for next year's Haryana Assembly elections. On Tuesday, a 10-member Congress delegation was not allowed to enter the Nuh district, with police citing Section 144. Congress Rajya Sabha MP Deepender Hooda questioned the police action, saying that had the same amount of police that was used to stop them been deployed on July 3, “both the communities would not have had a clash”. All eyes are now on what happens on Wednesday, when a BJP delegation has announced plans to visit Nuh, led by state party president Om Prakash Dhankar. The Aam Aadmi Party, which has political plans for Haryana, also announced it would visit the area Wednesday, and released a letter it had written to the DGP in this regard. Around 200 km away, farmer bodies from several villages of Haryana will be gathering in Baas village of Hisar district in their efforts to ensure communal harmony in the state. A farmer leader from Hisar, Suresh Koth, told Sukhbir Siwach that farmers from all faiths, including Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs, will participate in the event. “Haryana has not witnessed such communal tension in the past and we will not let it happen in the future too,” Koth said. Many of these farmer bodies led the agitation in Haryana against the three farm laws, which were later scrapped by the Centre. In a column on Sunday, Sukhbir had explored the absence largely of communal violence in Haryana, with a political leader talking about the overarching influence of Arya Samaj in the state, making the cow a revered creature across communities, and the overall identity of “farmers” shared by large sections. In newly-won Karnataka, the Congress is trying to ease several frictions, amid allegations of corruption made by the JD(S) and BJP, stalled transfers of police officers due to differences among party leaders, and talk of some discontent in the ranks over development works. Chief Minister Siddaramaiah held discussions with Congress legislators, divided as per districts, for the second day on Tuesday, with the talks expected to wrap up on Wednesday. PTI reported that the CM told the MLAs that the “financial implications” of the five “guarantee schemes (poll promises)” announced by the party would have an impact on developmental projects this year. As Parliament debates expunging of remarks or their restoration, tackles breach of privilege notices and descends into repeated adjournments, the Uttar Pradesh Assembly is preparing to pass a new set of rules, to replace the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business of UP Legislative Assembly, 1958. "The new set of rules was tabled on Monday. Discussion on it will take place on Wednesday and subsequently it will be passed," Uttar Pradesh Assembly Speaker Satish Mahana told PTI. Under the new rules, among other things, members will not be able to take their mobile phones inside the House, tear documents, stand or sit with their backs towards the Speaker, or show their backs to the Speaker when leaving the House. Nor can they smoke or talk and laugh loudly in the lobby. The Yogi Adityanath government can expect little resistance, given the majority with which the BJP was elected last year – 312 MLAs in an Assembly of 403. with PTI inputs
