Congress Questions Delay in Proroguing Lok Sabha, Asks if Govt Still Trying to Get Delimitation Bill Passed
The Wire Staff
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New Delhi: The opposition Congress has questioned the delay in proroguing the Lok Sabha since it was adjourned sine die ten days back and expressed concerns if government is once again trying to pass the Constitutional Amendment Bill pertaining to delimitation.
“The time gap between the adjournment of the Lok Sabha sine die and its prorogation is generally two to four days – although there are many instances when adjournment and prorogation have taken place on the very same day. Ten days have gone by since this Lok Sabha was adjourned sine die but still there is no information on its prorogation,” Congress Rajya Sabha MP and general secretary in-charge of communications Jairam Ramesh posted on X on Sunday (August 23).
“It is true that the gap for the Monsoon session in 2015 was 28 days and in 2021 it was 20 days. But there were no diabolical moves afoot then. What explains the abnormal delay now? Is the Union Home Minister still in search of his बहुकलंकित 2/3rd majority to get the Constitutional Amendment Bill on Delimitation passed in a Special Session?” Ramesh added in his post.
Ramesh also shared a photograph of pages from the book “Practice and Procedure of Parliament” by M.N. Kaul and S.L. Shakdher, which said the president terminates a session of the House under Article 85(2) acting on the advice of the prime minister, and the cabinet may be consulted before the advice is submitted.
The book further adds that prorogation “may take place any time, even while the House is sitting”, but “usually... follows the adjournment of the sitting of the House sine die”.
As per the extracts of the book shared by Ramesh, the time gap between the adjournment of the Lok Sabha sine die and its prorogation is generally two to four days, although there are instances wherein adjournment and prorogation have taken place on the very same day.
It adds that that the interval between prorogation and the House’s reassembly for a new session is termed the “inter-session period”. By sharing the extracts from the book, Ramesh highlighted the fact that prorogation, not adjournment, formally closes a session and clears the way for the next one to be convened.
The Modi government, in a first, had failed to pass its delimitation-linked Bill for women’s reservation in April due to its inability to reach the two-thirds majority in the House.
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