Monsoon session - a sweet and sour affair for govt

New Delhi: The monsoon session of Parliament was a sweet and sour affair for the government which managed smooth passage of Civil Nuclear Bill with BJP support but was forced by opposition to defer legislation on Education Tribunal and Enemy Property.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh succeeded in bringing BJP on board for the passage of the nuclear Bill much to the discomfiture of several non-BJP parties like RJD and SP.

In fact, an unprecedented bonhomie was witnessed between the BJP and government over the Nuclear Bill in both Houses of Parliament.

The opposition unity on price rise also did not survive for long as the Congress and its allies managed to sidestep their demand for an adjournment motion on the issue to censure the government.

In the process, the Lok Sabha could not transact business for the first five days and the Rajya Sabha also remained disrupted over the issue.

The Lok Sabha took up a discussion on the serious situation in Jammu and Kashmir but it remained inconclusive as the expected reply of Home Minister P Chidambaram did not come through.

The debate on the issue of illegal mining was also inconclusive.

The much-awaited discussion on misuse of CBI did not take place despite it being demanded off and on by the opposition.

The highlight of the debate on Bhopal gas tragedy was senior Congress leader Arjun Singh breaking his silence on the issue and seeking to put the then Home Ministry led by P V Narasimha Rao for allowing Union Carbide CEO Warren Anderson to leave the country.

The session's highlight was the passage of the Salary and Allowances Bill, raising the salary of MPs from Rs 16,000 to Rs 50,000 and increasing other allowances.

The Enemy Property (Amendment and Validation) Bill, 2010 was deferred with the government saying it would bring a fresh bill in the Winter session of Parliament. The opposition had cried foul arguing that the government wanted to change the Ordinance passed earlier to benefit the Raja of Mehmoodabad.

The Orissa (Alteration of Name) Bill and the Constitution (113th Amendment) Bill, seeking to change the name of the Oriya language to Odia by amending the Eighth Schedule were also deferred.

A cross section of MPs from Orissa, belonging both BJD and Congress, say the 'h' in Odisha is superfluous since the locals pronounce the state without it. It should actually be called 'Odisa'.

PTI