Govt urges smooth Parliament session; opposition demands debate on Adani bribery allegations

New Delhi: The central government on Sunday called for the smooth operation of Parliament as the winter session begins on Monday, amidst demands from opposition parties to discuss bribery allegations against the Adani group. At a pre-session meeting held on Sunday, the Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Kiren Rijiju, emphasised that the Business Advisory Committees (BAC) of both Houses would decide the session’s agenda in consultation with the Lok Sabha speaker and the Rajya Sabha chairperson.

Opposition leaders, including members of the Congress, have pressed for a debate on accusations that the Adani group paid bribes amounting to approximately Rs 2,300 crore to Indian politicians and bureaucrats for favourable deals in solar energy projects. The allegations have been denied by the Adani group, but the matter remains a significant concern for the opposition, which describes it as an issue of national economic and security importance.

Congress leaders Gaurav Gogoi and Pramod Tiwari also raised other pressing issues, such as ethnic violence in Manipur, severe pollution in northern India, and recent train accidents. Congress demanded the Adani bribery allegations be the first issue discussed when the session convenes.

Pre-session meeting

The meeting, chaired by Kiren Rijiju, was attended by BJP president J P Nadda, Congress leaders Jairam Ramesh and Gaurav Gogoi, and representatives of other parties such as T Siva, Harsimrat Kaur Badal, and Anupriya Patel.

Rijiju reiterated the government’s appeal for cooperative discussions in Parliament and said that any decision to extend the timeline for reports by joint parliamentary committees would be taken through the appropriate channels.

Key legislative agenda

The winter session, which runs till December 20, has 16 bills listed for consideration. Among them are:

• The Waqf (Amendment) Bill: Awaiting the joint committee’s report for consideration and passage in the Lok Sabha. Opposition members have requested an extension for the submission of this report.
• The Punjab Courts (Amendment) Bill: Proposes increasing the appellate jurisdiction of Delhi district courts from Rs 3 lakh to Rs 20 lakh.
• The Merchant Shipping Bill: Seeks to align India’s laws with international maritime treaties.
• Coastal Shipping and Indian Ports Bills: Aimed at enhancing maritime infrastructure and operations.

Apart from these, the government plans to present, discuss, and vote on the First Batch of Supplementary Demands for Grants for the financial year 2024-25.

Opposition concerns

Congress has alleged that the BJP-led government is dismissive of crucial issues, including the Manipur crisis and the alarming air pollution levels in northern India. Senior Congress leaders criticised what they called a lack of accountability in addressing these problems while pointing to inconsistencies in the government’s treatment of chief ministers across states.

Although speculation surrounds the introduction of legislation for simultaneous elections in the winter session, the government has not included such proposals in the agenda released thus far.