Congress leader Randeep Surjewala on Sunday accused Union Home Minister Amit Shah of “misleading” Parliament and the people of the country about the three new bills introduced in the Lok Sabha that seek to overhaul the country’s criminal justice system and demanded wider consultations on the proposed legislations involving legal experts and public. Surjewala claimed that without any prior intimation or public consultation or inviting suggestions from legal experts, jurists, criminologists, and other stakeholders, the Modi government introduced the three bills from its “black magic hat” on August 11. “The introductory remarks of the Home Minister gave away the fact that Amit Shah is himself out of depth, ignorant and oblivious to the entire exercise,” the Congress leader said.

“Other than some credit seeking and point scoring in desperation, a hidden exercise, away from the public glare or stakeholders’ suggestions and wisdom, cannot serve the public purpose of reforming the criminal law structure of the country,” Surjewala said. “After an extensive “scrutiny” of existing and proposed laws, he said the detailed definitions of terrorism and terrorist acts already exist since the time of Indira Gandhi and “the definition of terrorists in the IPC is an eyewash,” he said. On the issue of FIR against mob lynching, Congress leader alleged that Shah has given a “huge concession” to mob lynchers. “The BJP government has watered down the lowest punishment for mob lynching to seven years (under BNS, 2023), whereas the lowest punishment under IPC for such crime was life imprisonment,” he claimed.

Surjewala further claimed that the issue of sexual assault on minors, all provisions already exist and so does the punishment of 20 years for gang rape. “While the Bills have been referred to the Select Committee of Parliament, the Bills and its provisions must be thrown open for a larger public debate by judges, lawyers, jurists, criminologists, reformers, stakeholders and the general public in order to stay away from the trap of bulldozing the entire criminal law structure without discussion that is so ingrained in the DNA of the BJP government. We hope that better sense will prevail,” he said. Earlier on Friday, Amit Shah introduced the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Bill, 2023, Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita Bill, 2023 and Bharatiya Sakhshya Bill, 2023, aimed at giving justice and protecting the rights given to Indian citizens by Constitution.

The bills will abolish the Indian Penal Code, 1860, Criminal Procedure Code, (1898), 1973 and the Indian Evidence Act, 1872 made by the British. The Home Minister said that Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita Bill, which will replace CrPC, will now have 533 sections. “A total of 160 sections have been changed, nine new sections have been added and nine sections have been repealed,” he said. The Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita Bill, which will replace the IPC, will have 356 sections instead of the earlier 511 sections, the minister said, adding that 175 sections have been amended, 8 new sections have been added and 22 sections have been repealed. Bharatiya Sakshya Bill, which will replace the Evidence Act, will now have 170 sections instead of the earlier 167. Shah said 23 sections have been changed, one new section has been added and five repealed.

The ongoing session of Parliament is set to conclude on Friday after three weeks of turmoil, during which the Opposition and treasury benches faced off on the issue of ethnic violence in Manipur. Meanwhile, the suspension of the Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, who is also the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha is likely to dominate proceedings in the Lower House. Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi has called a meeting of party Lok Sabha MPs today morning to discuss the suspension of Chowdhury. The meeting is scheduled to be held at the party’s parliamentary office at 10:30 am. According to the listed legislative business in Lok Sabha, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will introduce the Central Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2023. The Centre is set to push legislation in Lok Sabha to impose a 28 per cent Goods and Services Tax (GST) for online gaming, casinos and horse racing.

Sitharaman will also introduce the Integrated Goods and Services Tax (Amendment) Bill, 2023. Both bills will be discussed for consideration and passage. YSRCP MP Reddeppa Nallakonda Gari will move a private member resolution on the ‘Beautification and Modernization of Railway Stations under the Adarsh Station Scheme’ in the Lower House.

Meanwhile, in Rajya Sabha CPI MP Binoy Viswam will move a private member resolution to formulate a Gig Workers’ Rights Bill with provisions for mandatory registration of aggregators and workers, issuance of unique IDs, provision of minimum wages, levying of fees for social security benefits and creation of a Gig-Workers’ Welfare Fund under a Gig-Workers’ Welfare Board to look after the welfare of gig-workers and their dependents. CPI MP John Brittas will move a private member resolution to take steps to amend Section 18 of the Constitution (One Hundred and First Amendment) Act, 2016, so as to provide compensation to the States for the loss of revenue arising on account of implementation of the GST for a total period of ten years.

RJD MP Manoj Jha has given a suspension of business notice in Rajya Sabha seeking discussion on the situation in Manipur. He further demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi makes a statement on the Manipur issue in the Upper House. “I would like to move a motion for the adjournment of the business of the House Under Rule 267 of the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in Rajya Sabha to discuss the Union and State Government’s failure to restore peace and maintain law and order in the state of Manipur which has led to the violation of fundamental rights of the citizens of Manipur and therefore it is demanded that the Prime Minister makes a statement on the floor of the house regarding this issue which should be followed by a detailed and comprehensive discussion,” the notice read. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday took part in the no-confidence motion debate and described the violence-hit Manipur as a “piece of one’s heart”.

PM Modi said that all efforts will be made to restore peace in the northeastern state which will soon walk the path of progress. “The north-east is our ‘jigar ka tukda’. The problems of Manipur are presented in such a manner as if they had begun in the recent past,” PM Modi said. The no-confidence motion was defeated in the Lok Sabha. The NDA defeated the no-confidence motion comfortably with a voice vote in the Lok Sabha. The opposition moved a no-confidence motion against the Modi government on July 26 which was taken up by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, whose parliamentary membership was restored on Monday, is likely to open the discussion on the no-confidence motion in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday. Manipur set to dominate the three-day debate commencing on Tuesday noon in the Lok Sabha on the opposition’s no-confidence motion. Meanwhile, INDIA party’s floor leaders meeting will be held at 10 am in the Parliament to chalk out the strategy for the floor of the house, important discussion on the no-confidence motion is to be taken up in Lok Sabha. The Narendra Modi-led NDA Government will face a no-confidence motion. The no-confidence motion was moved by the opposition parties of I.N.D.I.A bloc which was accepted by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla.

According to sources, a time of 12 hours has been fixed for the discussion. The ruling BJP will get around seven hours to partake in the discussion and around one hour 15 minutes has been allotted for the Congress party. YSRCP, Shiv Sena, JDU, BJD, BSP, BRS and LJP have been given a total of 2 hours, which has been divided according to the number of party’s MPs in the House. AÂ time limit of 1 hour 10 minutes has been allotted for other parties and independent MPs. The debate on the no-confidence motion against the BJP-led government is likely to take place on August 8 and 9 in the Lok Sabha and Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to give a reply on August 10.

According to the listed legislative business of Rajya Sabha for the day, Union Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is to move the Interservices Organisations (Command, Control and Discipline) Bill, 2023 in the Rajya Sabha for consideration and passage. The bill will move to the Upper House to empower the Commander-in-Chief or the Officer-in Command of Inter-services Organisations in respect of service personnel who are subject to the Air Force Act, 1950, the Army Act, 1950 and the Navy Act, 1957, who are serving under or attached to his command for the maintenance of discipline and proper discharge of their duties. The Bill was earlier passed by the Lok Sabha.

Meanwhile, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan will also move the Indian Institutes of Management (Amendment) Bill, 2023 in the Rajya Sabha for consideration and passage to amend the Indian Institutes of Management Act, 2017. The Bill was earlier passed by the Lok Sabha. Moreover, Ministry of Heavy Industries Krishan Pal, Ministry of Home Affairs Nityanand Rai, Ministry of Finance Pankaj Chaudhary, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Shobha Karandlaje, Ministry of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Kailash Choudhary, Ministry of Home Affairs Ajay Kumar and Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports Nisith Pramanik to lay the papers on the table. According to the revised list of business, Jasbir Singh Gill is to present the Seventh Report (Hindi and English versions) of the Committee on Empowerment of Women (2022-23) on the subject ‘Health Facilities for Tribal Women’.

The reports of standing committee on education, women, children, youth and sports, Dharambir Singh and Ratansinh Magansinh Rathod to to lay reports on 352nd report on action taken by the Government on the recommendations/observations contained in the 348th Report on ‘Demands for Grants 2023-24 of the Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education’.

Meanwhile, Krishan Pal to make the following statements regarding the status of implementation of the recommendations contained in the 311th Report of the Standing Committee on Industry on Action Taken by the Government on the recommendations/observations contained in the 306th Report of the Committee on Demands for Grants (2021-2022) pertaining to the Ministry of Heavy Industries, the status of implementation of the recommendations contained in the 316th Report of the Standing Committee on Industry on Demands for Grants (2022-2023) pertaining to the Ministry of Heavy Industries, the status of implementation of the recommendations contained in the 319th Report of the Standing Committee on Industry on Action Taken by the Government on the recommendations/ observations contained in the 316th Report of the Committee on Demands for Grants (2022-2023) pertaining to the Ministry of Heavy Industries, and the status of implementation of the recommendations contained in the 321st Report of the Standing Committee on Industry on Demands for Grants (2023-2024) pertaining to the Ministry of Heavy Industries

Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray faction) leader Sanjay Raut on Monday opposed the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amendment) Bill, 2023 to be moved in Rajya Sabha by Union Home Minister Amit Shah in Rajya Sabha today. Raut said that the bill is an attack on the federal structure of India. “This bill is an attack on the federal structure of India. During the elections, they (BJP) had said that they will give statehood to Delhi but lost the election to Arvind Kejriwal”, said the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader. Furthermore, Raut said, “Kejriwal’s (Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal) govt is doing good work in various fields including education, health. They are jealous… We will oppose it in the Rajya Sabha”. Notably, Union Home Minister Amit Shah is all set to move the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amendment) Bill, 2023, in Rajya Sabha today.

Earlier on August 3, the Bill was passed in Lok Sabha by a voice vote after a walkout by members of I.N.D.I.A delegation. The ordinance on the control of services in Delhi was promulgated in May days after a Supreme Court verdict on the issue. The Bill empowers the Central Government to make rules in connection with the affairs of the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi including the functions, terms and other conditions of service of officers and employees.

CM Arvind Kejriwal has been seeking the support of opposition parties against the bill, especially in the Rajya Sabha. In his reply to the debate in Lok Sabha, Amit Shah said that opposition parties did not take part in the debate on any bill passed in the House and kept protesting on their demands over the debate on the Manipur situation. Pointing towards the opposition benches, he asked what has changed that they were taking part in the bill concerning Delhi.

“The opposition’s priority is to save their alliance. The opposition is not worried about Manipur…Everyone is talking about the rights of a state. But which state? Delhi is not a state but a Union Territory…The Parliament has the right to make laws for Delhi…,” Amit Shah said.

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Wednesday accepted the no-confidence motion against the government moved by Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi on behalf of opposition parties of I.N.D.I.A alliance. After Gogoi moved the motion, the Speaker asked about the number of members supporting the motion. He admitted the motion and said the time of the debate will be decided later. The House resumed its normal functioning after the Speaker accepted the demand for no-confidence motion. Opposition members expressed their opinion on the bills being introduced by the government. The two Houses have seen repeated adjournments since the commencement of the monsoon session of Parliament on July 20. Gogoi represents the Kaliabor constituency in Assam and is an MP from the northeast region. Bharat Rashtra Samithi, which has nine members in Lok Sabha, also gave a no-confidence motion notice against the government.

Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal said the government is “ready” for every situation. “Let the No Confidence Motion come, Government is ready for every situation. We do want a discussion on Manipur…Before the commencement of the session, they wanted a discussion. When we agreed, they brought up the issue of Rules. When we reached an agreement on Rules, they brought in the new issue that the PM come and initiate discussion. I think these are all excuses…” Meghwal told ANI. Gaurav Gogoi had earlier in the day submitted a notice for no-confidence motion against the government in the Lok Sabha.

Manipur issue at the forefront

The decision to bring a no-confidence motion was taken at a meeting of opposition I.N.D.I.A alliance parties held on Tuesday. As many as 26 Opposition had earlier come together naming their alliance as I.N.D.I.A. Opposition MPs said that they know the numbers are in favour of the government in Lok Sabha but no-confidence motion is a way to seek reply from Prime Minister Narendra Modi on various issues including the violence in Manipur. “This No Confidence Motion is a political move with a political purpose – a political move which will bring results…The No Confidence Motion will compel him (Prime Minister) to come to the Parliament. We need a discussion on the issues of the country, especially on Manipur, inside the Parliament. Forget the numbers, they know the numbers and we know the numbers..,” CPI MP Binoy Viswam said.

Manickam Tagore, Congress Whip in Lok Sabha said INDIA alliance is together and it had proposed the idea of no-confidence motion. Yesterday it was decided. Today, Congress party’s leader is moving it. We wanted to break the arrogance of Mr Modi. He is behaving as an arrogant person – not to come to the Parliament and make a statement on Manipur…We feel that it is our duty to use this last weapon,” he said. AAP MP Raghav Chadha said that some parliamentary procedures are used to have a long-duration discussion and to compel the government to give a reply.

“Many a time in India’s Parliamentary history, critical instruments of debate, dialogue and discussion within Parliament are exercised. Regardless of the outcome of those instruments and motions, they are exercised with the sole objective of a long-duration discussion on an important issue subsequent to which the PM of India is compelled to come to Parliament and respond to the issues raised by the people and the Members of the Lok Sabha,” he said.

“I think these parliamentary instruments actually strengthen India’s democracy and must be exercised time again and again to pressurise the government to come before the Lok Sabha and answer the questions.”