As Leader of the Opposition, Rahul Gandhi has been doing remarkably well: both outside and in the Parliament. Outside, he is emerging as a chief protestor and taking on the government whenever he can. Irrespective of content, his actions are enough to give the BJP leadership sleepless nights. “A constant headache” is how many within the BJP see him as.
What makes his protests significant is the success quotient that they bring along. Take for instance the recent “outing at a police station” as one among the Congress chose to describe Rahul personally going to the police station to get an FIR registered for pellet gun injuries during the Cockroach Janta Party-led students protest march in New Delhi. The case related to pellet gun injuries suffered by Sahil Lochab who is allegedly a victim of police pellet-firing.
Lochab, reportedly, approached Rahul after the police failed to file an FIR following his discharge from the hospital. The 19-year-old had lost his vision after being hit by pellets. He underwent a surgery, with the doctors saying that there is only “one percent chance” of his vision returning.
Not only did Rahul reach the police station, but sat on a dharna for over six hours outside the DCP office, making it quite clear that he will not leave till the FIR is not registered. Rahul was accompanied by his sister and MP Priyanka and other Congress leaders.
“For almost a month he has been calling for the registration of an FIR and going from one police station to another. After hours of protest, an FIR has been registered,” Rahul said. He also alleged that the FIR was registered after clearance “from the top”, making it quite clear that the police were “under pressure from the top” for not registering a complaint. “A final FIR has been registered after an okay from Amit Shah, then you can imagine who was stopping the registration of an FIR, as these cops wanted to do so, but were not allowed to do so,” Rahul alleged.
Irrespective, Rahul succeeded in getting done what the government or the cops were dithering over.
Therefore, when Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said that Rahul is doing his constitutional duty by holding the government accountable, he was bang on. “If the Leader of Opposition does not oppose what good is he?” Abdullah said.
Omar couldn’t have put it better. In fact, he was resonating the sentiment of the erstwhile BJP leadership, namely the late Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley, who held that it is the job of the Opposition to oppose and responsibility of the government to see that the House functions.
On this count, Rahul has excelled and the government failed given that it has not been able to ensure that the Lok Sabha functions. As for the Rajya Sabha, it has also witnessed disruptions on a daily basis.
As for Rahul, he has gone a step ahead from the Swaraj-Jaitley mantra: apart from simply opposing and obstructing the functioning of the House, Rahul has ensured a complete wash out of the entire Monsoon Session of Parliament.
The Session faced disruptions over the students’ protests and demanded police accountability even as Rahul demanded that the Union home minister be present in the House and make a statement.
Reportedly, the Lok Sabha recorded the lowest productivity rate for 22 years: since 2004 to be precise.
Trinamool Congress Derek O’Brien pointed to another low. “For the first time since 1952, the prime minister and home minister did not enter the two Houses till the last day,” he said.
But back to the Parliament business and Rahul’s role in not letting it happen or the government succumbing to pressure and finally relenting to the Opposition demands particularly on key Bills.
The Opposition put up a united front and pushed back key legislations, including the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, or FCRA as it is better known. In fact, facing a strong resistance from the Opposition, the government had to relent and refer the contentious Bill to a Joint Parliamentary Committee for a review and broader consultation.
As for the Union minister’s presence in the House, it was towards the fag end of the Session that Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju announced the home minister’s willingness to speak in the House and address the concerns of the Opposition.
But it was too little too late, given that the government should have responded earlier rather than appearing adamant and the home minister missing from Parliament. By the time Rijiju came up with the appeal that the Opposition should listen to the government’s reply, the Opposition rather the Congress had won the round.
“For the first time during a Parliament session, the government appeared so scared and intimidated. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah stayed away from the proceedings of the House,” Congress’s Gaurav Gogoi said.
The Congress leader said the Opposition had made it clear at the beginning of the Monsoon Session that it wanted to raise several essential issues in Parliament.
These included the NEET paper leak, the alleged theft of offerings from the Ram Mandir, the adulteration of ethanol in petrol, India’s foreign policy and border dispute with China, the continuous collapse and subsidence of public infrastructure, and corruption allegations against some BJP chief ministers.
Gogoi said the students’ movement forced the education minister to resign and compelled the government to amend a Bill that had been introduced two years earlier.
Although a two-day discussion was held, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah did not come to the House even once, he said.
Earlier Priyanka Gandhi had insisted that Union Home Minister Amit Shah must address the House before other legislative business continues. “If you want to run the House, then come and address this,” she had, reportedly, said.
That the government has had to relent, be it on the FCRA or the home minister agreeing to come to the House speaks volumes about the success of the Opposition. In fact more about the Gandhis or the brother-sister duo who are at their combative best and ever ready to take to the streets at the drop of a hat.
On this count, they are performing their role as a major Opposition rather well. Of course, there can be a debate about whether obstructing the House and its proceedings is good parliamentary practice, but then applying the Swaraj-Jaitley principle, the Gandhi siblings seem to have made the cut.
Were they to keep this momentum and not limit their “expertise” only to Parliament, but apply it to electoral politics then they could in 2029 better their 2024 performance and perhaps give the Modi government a run for its money. But given Rahul inconsistency and flip flop, that may be a pipe dream.
Hence the Opposition unity which is currently at display on issues may not be visible in 2029: the INDIA bloc may be going different directions at the time of the general elections.
But what about the government? Is it rattled? Is it nervous? More importantly, has it failed to meet the obligation of ensuring that the Parliament functions? On this, the jury is out.
—The writer is an author, journalist and political commentator
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