New Delhi, 13 August- In the 80th year of the country’s independence, the country’s politics has come to such a sorry pass that the ruling BJP led NDA and the INDIA block opposition today indulged in blame game accusing each other for wasting the 25-days long Monsoon session of parliament coming to end today while both holding the other responsible for the fiasco.
The Monsoon Session 2026 was one of the most unproductive sessions of Parliament, as several important Bills that the government intended to table in the House were lost due to the disruptions.
While Parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju accused the Congress of repeatedly disrupting Parliament during the Monsoon Session, several INDIA bloc parties boycotted the customary tea party hosted by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla after the House was adjourned sine die.
Addressing a press conference, Rijiju said the government was unhappy with the level of discussions during the session, which recorded productivity of 19 per cent in the Lok Sabha and 39 per cent in the Rajya Sabha.
“For the first time, we have seen the Opposition running away from debate in Parliament when the government wanted discussions. Congress is solely responsible for unfairly disrupting the proceedings,” he said.
Making mince of the BJP criticism over repeated adjournments, the Opposition Congress countered aggressively listing five major achievements of the Monsoon Session of Parliament, which concluded today.
Talking to media persons, senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said, “I believe there are 5 major achievements regarding this monsoon session.”
“The second major success concerns the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan (VBSA) Bill that seeks the massive centralization of all universities…the report was deferred until the winter session…the third bill was the Constitution (One Hundred and Thirtieth Amendment) Bill, which proposed the automatic dismissal of ministers, Chief Ministers, and Prime Ministers…the report was being finalised, and a clause-by-clause discussion was underway, but it was announced mid-meeting that the report would not be presented in this session…,” he said.
He added, “For the past 10 days, there was a massive media buzz suggesting the FCRA bill was just around the corner; the Home Minister remained absolutely adamant that it would be introduced. Then came a call from the US Vice President, and we saw the result. There was pressure from us and from various organizations, but the US Vice President’s intervention was certainly a factor.”
The FCRA bill has been referred to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC).
The fifth “achievement”, the Congress leader said, was that the BJP failed to secure a one-third majority for the Delimitation Bill.
“They were so eager for a tainted two-thirds majority; they engineered splits in parties, breaking the TMC and the Shiv Sena, and attempting to break others, all to secure that tainted two-thirds majority needed to pass the delimitation Bill…now, it has become clear that there is no two-thirds majority. They do not have this majority, and they never will, no matter how hard they try,” he added.
The Opposition Congress maintained that the House would be allowed to run only when the government accepts their demand to discuss the police brutality against students during the recent Jantar Mantar protest and the alleged embezzlement of the donations at Ayodhya’s Ram Temple.
The government agreed to discuss the issue of students, but no commitment was made on the matter of Ram Temple issue, with some reports claiming that the government is of the view that the issue is a state subject, in this case Uttar Pradesh.
However, the Congress argued that since the temple was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and donations were collected from across the country, it becomes a national issue.
Rijiju said 12 bills were passed during the Monsoon Session, but only one was discussed in both Houses.
Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said, “Neither the Prime Minister nor the Home Minister came to the House. How will democracy and Parliament function? And today, they have come just to sing Vande Mataram. They have come, after the entire session has already taken place…”
The session, which began on July 20, was marked by repeated disruptions over the NEET paper leak, alleged embezzlement of Ram temple donations and police action against protesting students. The opposition also sought statements from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah.
Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi said the youth wanted to know who ordered that “protesting students be shot at” with pellet guns.
He said the Opposition was not interested in listening to Shah’s “imagination and lecture” in Parliament. If Shah ordered that the students be shot at, he is culpable, and if he did not, he is incompetent, Rahul said.
“In both cases, he should resign,” the Congress leader said.
“The Monsoon Session ends today, but PM Modi and HM Amit Shah only deemed it fit to come to the House for the final Vande Mataram ceremony and chose not to utter a single word. It is their duty to answer the questions asked by MPs and the LOP, but they ran away from this responsibility for the entire session. Their complete silence on the police brutalities against students, theft at the Ram temple and all the pressing issues facing our country exposes their guilt before the entire nation,” Congress MP K C Venugopal also wrote on X.
CPI(M) MP John Brittas said, “It is a sad day that the Monsoon Session has been washed out. This unfortunate situation has occurred because of the stubbornness and hubris of this government. We have been demanding that Amit Shah come to Parliament and make a statement regarding the unfortunate incidents related to the students’ agitation. He was so adamant and responded only the other day, saying that he was ready to give a long speech. We are not prepared to listen to a long speech by the Home Minister.”
After the Lok Sabha was adjourned sine die, the Congress, Trinamool Congress and Samajwadi Party boycotted the customary tea party hosted by Birla, according to sources.
DMK leader Kanimozhi attended the gathering, the sources said.
In the Rajya Sabha, Opposition leaders, including Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and former party chief Sonia Gandhi, attended the tea party hosted by Chairman C P Radhakrishnan.
The customary gatherings are hosted by the Lok Sabha Speaker and Rajya Sabha Chairman in their respective chambers after the Houses are adjourned sine die.
Veteran Journalist and Political Commentator
