New Delhi: Amidst the announcement of a special session of the Parliament from September 18 to 22 by Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi, speculations have intensified over the palpable reasons behind the unprecedented move of the Narendra Modi government. Joshi announced on a social media platform that the government is looking forward to having a fruitful discussion and debate amid Amrit Kaal. The officials are tight-lipped to share anything beyond the one agenda that Joshi revealed.
However, sources said that the government would utilize this session for ‘branding’ ahead of crucial elections in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Telangana and Mizoram. During the five days of the session, the government is likely to highlight the success of the Moon mission, G20 summit and celebrate the Amrit Kaal. Though the government has not announced any legislative business yet for the special session, there is a buzz that the intent is to bring the ‘One Nation One Election’ bill. The idea of ‘one nation one election’ deals with holding Lok Sabha and state assemblies’ elections simultaneously. The idea has been very close to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s heart and he, on several occasions, pushed for it stating that it would reduce the cost of elections and give more time for governance.
In January last year, the PM had said that the continuous cycle of elections results in politicization of everything and suffering of developmental works. The talk is also high over the Women’s Reservation bill. The bill seeks to provide 33 percent reservation to women in Lok Sabha and Assemblies. The government may bring the bill in this Lok Sabha as there has been near uniformity on the issue among all the parties. According to the Election Commission of India, women voters had outshined men in 2019 Lok Sabha elections. The voting percentage of women was 67.18 percent in 2019 while that of male voters was 67.01 percent. In view of the increasing participation of women in elections, it would be imperative for the government to consider the introduction of the bill in the lower house. The bill was passed in the Rajya Sabha in 2010.
Finally, there are assumptions that the government may pass a resolution giving back State status to the Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir – as Wednesday both the AG and SG, on instructions of the Central government told the Supreme Court that the status of the UT of J&K is only temporary – and thus pave the way for assembly elections in the state.
Significantly, the Opposition attacked the government for “managing the News Cycle, Modi Style.” Senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh alleged that the announcement is a Modi style of diverting the news from the latest revelations on alleged Adani scam. “News today has been dominated by the latest revelations on the Modani scam. Tomorrow the ever-growing INDIA parties meet in Mumbai. How to counter? Announce a 5-day special session of Parliament when the Monsoon session has just ended 3 weeks back,” Jairam said. He also asserted that joint parliamentary committee demand will continue to resonate inside and outside Parliament.