The shadow of assembly elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh loom large on the winter session of Parliament which begins on Friday, with opposition parties issuing a joint statement to criticise the alleged violation of the Model Code of Conduct by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his cabinet colleagues in the Gujarat polls. They also charged the Election Commission with inaction in dealing with the alleged violations.
“The opposition parties strongly criticised the violation of Model Code of Conduct by Narendra Modi and his cabinet colleagues during the Gujarat elections and on the day of polling when he held a roadshow in Ahmedabad,” the statement read.
The opposition bloc also said that the “inaction of the Election Commission is indeed shocking as it has failed to uphold its Constitutional mandate under Article 324.” This attitude of the EC, the parties said, has cast an ominous shadow on the credibility of the EC and the integrity of the electoral process.
The meeting was attended by Congress' Ghulam Nabi Azad, Mallikarjun Kharge, Anand Sharma and Jyotiraditya Scindia, Derek O'Brien and Sudip Banyopadhyay of the Trinamool Congress, National Conference leader Farooq Abdullah, NCP leader Tariq Anwar, Samajwadi Party MP Naresh Agrawal, RJD's J.P. Yadav and CPI National Secretary D. Raja.
The opposition leaders met in Azad's office on the eve of the winter session. Amongst the issues that these parties are expected to raise include slowdown of the economy, effects of GST and demonetisation, farmers' distress, unemployment, and alleged corruption in the Rafale deal. They will meet again on Monday morning to finetune a coordinated strategy.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended an all-party meeting convened by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Ananth Kumar. He asked all parties for their cooperation in running the session smoothly.
He also said that simultaneous elections to Parliament and state assemblies must happen.
The legislative business planned by the government includes legal amendments to operationalise ban on triple talaq, the Financial Resolution and Deposit Insurance Bill, amendments to the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, giving constitutional status to the National Commission on Backward Classes and the transgenders bill.
However, results of the assembly elections are expected to set the course for the session, which will be on from December 15 to January 5. The election results will be out on Monday, when Parliament reconvenes after the weekend break. If the results of Gujarat especially go the way of the BJP, the government is likely to be strident in getting its agenda through the session. If there is an upset in Gujarat, the opposition will be emboldened in taking on the government on various issues.
