The Narendra Modi government is bracing up for a tough week in Parliament as the Opposition is set to raise the intolerance and price rise issue. The government has elaborate legislative agenda planned for the Winter Session but its top priority remains the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill.
After the PM's meeting with Congress President Sonia Gandhi and former PM Manmohan Singh, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Central government is expecting that it will be able to pass the GST with consensus and not just a majority.
Opposition parties have given a number of notices in both Houses of Parliament. Congress and JDU have given notices in Rajya Sabha to discuss the issue after suspension of business under Rule 267, while in Lok Sabha Congress and CPI-M have submitted notices for a debate under rule 193, which does not entail voting or require suspension of business.
The first two days of the session that began on November 26 were functional as parties did not want to be seen blocking a discussion on the Constitution on the occasion of Ambedkar's anniversary even though the opposition attacked the government over alleged rise in intolerance and communal violence.
The opposition has been seeking a discussion on the issue of intolerance for quite some time.
At the all-party meeting held on November 25 in the backdrop of actor Aamir Khan's remarks on "growing intolerance", opposition parties had made a strong pitch for an early discussion on the issue, insisting that returning of awards by writers, artistes and filmmakers should not be taken lightly.
Six Left parties, including CPI-M, would also hold protests, both inside and outside the Parliament, on the "hate offensive" by BJP and Sangh Parivar outfits.
With most opposition parties keen on aggressively raising the issue, Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu said though the government does not agree with their perception of rising intolerance it was "willing to go along with the opposition in this regard for a discussion in an appropriate manner".
He had also contended that such incidents lie in the domain of the state governments, which are vested with responsibility to maintain law and order.
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