Parliament: Diminished INDIA alliance strength after largest Parliament suspensions in country’s history | India News

NEW DELHI: With a total of 141 MPs suspended from the Parliament, the ruling BJP party currently encounters minimal opposition in both the Houses. On Monday, the Lok Sabha expelled 33 members, and an additional 49 were suspended the next day. Meanwhile, 59 MPs have been romoved from the Rajya Sabha for causing a number of disruptions during a fierce showdown with the Centre over last week’s security breach in Parliament.

Two individuals released yellow smoke canisters inside the Lok Sabha, while two others detonated red and yellow smoke canisters outside the new Parliament building last week, triggering a security scare and raising concerns about the safety of the parliamentary premises.

Prominent figures expelled from Parliament include Shashi Tharoor, Karti Chidambaram, Supriya Sule, Dimple Yadav, and Farooq Abdullah. Congress’ top two leaders in the Lok Sabha – Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and Gaurav Gogoi – were also thrown out.
After the Lok Sabha suspended 82 MPs, around a 100 opposition lawmakers remain in the Lower House with NDA enjoying more than 300. The Rajya Sabha, likewise, has fewer than 100 opposition MPs to challenge the ruling party. Many remaining opposition members belong to parties like Andhra Pradesh’s YSR Congress Party and Odisha’s Biju Janata Dal, which have previously supported BJP on various issues.
The majority of the suspended MPs belong to the INDIA alliance, a coalition of opposition parties that have come together to challenge the ruling BJP in the general election next year. Out of the 142 seats the alliance held in the 543-member Lok Sabha, 95 have been suspended. In the 250-member Rajya Sabha, where the alliance has 101 seats, 46 have faced suspension.

Expressing concern over the situation, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor said on Tuesday, “Unfortunately, we have to start writing obituaries for parliamentary democracy in India.” Meanwhile, RJD MP Manoj Kumar Jha called his suspension ‘a badge of honour.’ Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge alleged that the government has deliberately suspended opposition leaders to pass bills without debate.
The mass suspensions come at a time the Parliament is seeing fervent protests over last week’s Parliament security breach, with the opposition demanding statements from either Prime Minister Narendra Modi or Home Minister Amit Shah. The breach is being investigated by a ‘high-powered committee,’ but the government has downplayed the incident.

In response to the December 13 breach, PM Modi acknowledged its seriousness but criticised the opposition for politicising the issue, emphasising the need for a thorough investigation into the motives and individuals behind the incident. PM Modi reacted to the suspension of opposition MPs by saying that they have been rattled by recent defeats in state polls.
The suspension of parliament members is the largest in the country’s history. In 1989, 63 lawmakers of the Lok Sabha were suspended during a debate of a report on former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi’s assassination.

Watch First time in Indian parliament history, 92 MPs suspended in a single sitting, Opposition terms it ‘murder of democracy’