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Parliament witnessed considerable uproar with the opposition refusing to cooperate and, as a result, their leaders missed the opportunity to engage in debates on important Bills
Opposition members protest in the well of the Lok Sabha during the monsoon session of Parliament, in New Delhi on August 20. (Image: Sansad TV/PTI)
The special intensive revision in poll-bound Bihar dominated the opposition’s agenda in Parliament, so much so that it missed out on taking part in discussion on important Bills.
Several such Bills were passed in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, but the opposition was either up in arms against the voter list revision exercise or busy forwarding its ‘vote chori’ campaign, government sources indicated.
The sources said Parliament witnessed considerable uproar during the monsoon session, with the opposition refusing to cooperate. As a result, their leaders missed the opportunity to engage in debates on several important Bills that were passed, they said.
Usually divided, the opposition was unified this time on the SIR exercise in Bihar. The united opposition also led a successful protest from Parliament to the EC, even if they were stopped midway.
Parties like the DMK, Congress, and TMC marshaled resources on this vital issue, while the smaller parties rallied around them. This time, opposition parties created a lot of ruckus and refused to cooperate.
Despite multiple attempts by the ruling side to convince them that the SIR cannot be discussed in Parliament, as the Centre does not have the authority to speak on behalf of the Election Commission of India (ECI), there were massive protests throughout the monsoon session.
It left little scope for any business to take place in a cordial manner. On multiple occasions, both inside and outside, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju tried to pacify the opposition that the Election Commission (EC) is an autonomous body and that the central government does not have the mandate to discuss its functioning. The only aspect the government can discuss regarding the EC is electoral reforms.
In the Lok Sabha, a few bills – such as the Representation of Scheduled Tribes (Goa), Merchant Shipping, National Sports Governance, National Anti-Doping (Amendment), Indian Ports, and Mines & Minerals Amendment – were passed after brief discussions in between noisy disruptions. The rest were cleared without debate.
In the Rajya Sabha, the Lading Bill, 2025, was smoothly passed on the first day without any disruption. Most other bills – Carriage of Goods by Sea, Coastal Shipping, Manipur GST (Amendment), Manipur Appropriation (No.2), Merchant Shipping, Representation of Scheduled Tribes (Goa), National Sports Governance, National Anti-Doping (Amendment), Income Tax, Taxation Laws (Amendment), Indian Ports, Mines & Minerals Amendment, and IIMs Amendment – were passed either amid noisy protests or after opposition parties staged walkouts.
The only discussion that could take place was on ‘Operation Sindoor’, which was agreed on by both sides at the beginning of the session. It, however, turned unpleasant when the opposition walked out of the Rajya Sabha while Union Home Minister Amit Shah was replying to the discussion.
At the end of the session, the government tried to bring some semblance of normalcy into the House by attempting to discuss India’s space mission. But this discussion, too, was cut short in the last couple of days because the opposition was in no mood to allow any debate to take place.
Despite committing to a discussion with the government on crucial bills like the Income Tax and Sports Bills, there was barely any participation from the opposition. These legislation, which are landmark in nature – the Sports Bill being crucial to India’s participation in the Olympics bid of 2036 – did not bring the opposition together to pass them.
BILLS PASSED BY THE LOK SABHA
- The Readjustment of Representation of Scheduled Tribes in Assembly Constituencies of Goa Bill, 2025
- The Merchant Shipping Bill, 2025
- The Manipur Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2025
- The Manipur Appropriation (No.2) Bill, 2025
- The National Sports Governance Bill, 2025
- The National Anti-Doping (Amendment) Bill, 2025
- The Income-tax Bill, 2025
- The Taxation Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2025
- The Indian Ports Bill, 2025
- The Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2025
- The Indian Institutes of Management (Amendment) Bill, 2025
- The Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Bill, 2025
BILLS PASSED/RETURNED IN THE RAJYA SABHA
- The Bills of Lading Bill, 2025
- The Carriage of Goods by Sea Bill, 2025
- The Coastal Shipping Bill, 2025
- The Manipur Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2025
- The Manipur Appropriation (No.2) Bill, 2025
- The Merchant Shipping Bill, 2025
- The Readjustment of Representation of Scheduled Tribes in Goa Assembly Constituencies Bill, 2025
- The National Sports Governance Bill, 2025
- The National Anti-Doping (Amendment) Bill, 2025
- The Income-tax Bill, 2025
- The Taxation Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2025
- The Indian Ports Bill, 2025
- The Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2025
- The Indian Institutes of Management (Amendment) Bill, 2025
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