Disruption of Parliament should be done in 'extreme situation', not become norm: Manish Tewari

The Congress MP also said that putting the blame for frequent adjournments on the Congress is both "unfortunate and opportunistic"

Amid repeated adjournments in Parliament, Congress MP Manish Tewari on Sunday said parliamentarians should seriously introspect whether disruption is at all a "legitimate tactic", asserting that it should only be used in an "extreme situation" and not become the norm.

He, however, said it is the responsibility of the government to run the House, and putting the blame for frequent adjournments on the Congress is both "unfortunate and opportunistic", as the BJP and its allies had stalled Parliament during their time as the opposition during 2004-14.

In an interview with PTI, Mr. Tewari suggested that as a norm after the government business is over at 6 p.m., a discussion should be allowed under rule 193 in the Lok Sabha on any subject collectively decided by the Opposition.

"I had even suggested in an informal conversation with the Speaker (Om Birla) that as a norm after the government business is over at 6 pm, a discussion under rule 193 on any subject, collectively suggested by the Opposition, should be taken up every working day of Parliament between 6 pm and 9 pm," he said.

Similarly, a discussion could take place in Rajya Sabha under the concurrent rule, Mr. Tewari added.

This will ensure that the government business functions in an uninterrupted manner and the Opposition is also able to articulate its concerns on the matters before the country, the Congress MP said, adding that unfortunately, it seems the treasury benches are not too enthusiastic and would rather just "railroad" their own business than allowing the Opposition's concerns be discussed as well.

On disruption rather than debate becoming the norm in Parliament with the first week of the Monsoon session nearly washed out, Mr. Tewari said, "Parliament as an institution and legislative assemblies collectively have unfortunately become irrelevant to the national discourse of the country now going back a couple of decades." This is primarily because parliamentarians and legislators across parties, across decades and across the country have systematically devalued the institution, he said.