The Monsoon Session Update

by | Jul 13, 2022 | In the news, Uncategorized

The monsoon session of the parliament will start from 18 July 2022 and continue till 12 August 2022. The Election  Commission of India also announced that the presidential election will be held on 18 July and the vote count will  take place on 21 July, a few days prior to when President Ram Nath Kovind’s tenure comes to an end on 24 July. The ruling party’s (Bhartiya Janta Party) candidate for the Presidency is Ms. Draupadi Murmu, former Governor  of the state of Jharkhand and the opposition’s candidate is Mr. Yashwant Sinha, a former BJP leader and former  Finance Minister. In addition to the presidential election, the vice-presidential election will also take place during  the session. 

The government is anticipating a busy session, with at least 25 bills pending. These include the Personal Data  Protection Bill, 2019; the Weapons of Mass Destruction and Delivery Systems (Prohibition of Unlawful Activities)  Amendment Bill, 2022 (the bill prohibits individuals from funding any unlawful activity involving weapons of mass  destruction or their delivery systems); the Mediation Bill, 2021; The Wildlife (Protection) Amendment Bill, 2021; the Biological Diversity (Amendment) Bill, 2021; and, the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens  (Amendment) Bill, 2019. 

The Bank Privatisation Bill, a legislation for privatisation of select public sector banks, which has been in the works  for several months is also likely to be presented in the monsoon session. The centre wants to maintain a minimal  presence in the financial sector by lowering the minimum stake in Public Sector Banks (PSBs) from 51 percent to  26 percent. However, the government will only exit those PSBs that have been identified for privatization. These  include the Indian Overseas Bank, the Central Bank of India, and UCO Bank. 

The government is also expected to introduce a new law to replace the current SEZ Act, 2005, which governs Special Economic Zones (SEZ), with the Development of Enterprise and Service Hubs (DESH) Act in order to bring  SEZs in compliance with the norms of the World Trade Organization (WTO). The proposed regulation also  proposes to allow development hubs to house offshore banking entities, subject to the approval of the Reserve  Bank of India. 

In this session, the opposition is expected to raise several issues such as inflation, the overall economic situation (unemployment, fall in rupee and slow recovery of labour markets), the Agnipath scheme and the demand to  extend the GST compensation period (An act which was introduced by the government in 2017 to compensate  the states for the loss of revenue arising due to the implementation of GST). The recent political crisis in  Maharashtra which resulted in change in the government is also likely to be raised in the parliament. 

Gateway Consulting is a public policy firm headquartered in Gurugram, India. For more information,  please contact Tushar Gandhi, CEO on +91 8879004364 / tushar.gandhi@gatewayconsulting.co.in 

Political Situation In Maharashtra

by | Jul 1, 2022 | In the news, Uncategorized

On the evening of 30 June 2022, Mr Eknath Shinde was sworn in as the new Chief Minister of Maharashtra and Mr  Devendra Fadnavis became the Deputy Chief Minister. The development came a day after Mr Uddhav Thackeray,  who led the coalition of Shiv Sena, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Congress, resigned as the state’s Chief  Minister, after just two and a half years of being in power. This took place in the backdrop of a political crisis which  started on 20 June as the Shiv-Sena led coalition faced a setback where they won just two seats out of 10 in the  Legislative council elections against Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) winning five seats. 

The turning point came when Mr Eknath Shinde, who was part of the Shiv Sena led coalition and Minister of  Maharashtra’s Urban Development and Public Works (Public Undertaking), staged a walk out from the party along  with 40 other Members of Legislative Assembly (MLAs). Mr Shinde received simple majority of 37 Shiv Sena MLAs,  out of the total 55, who pledged their support to him through a written letter to the deputy speaker of the  Legislative Assembly. 

In a series of tweets, Mr Shinde expressed that the alliance of Shiv Sena, NCP and Congress in the state of  Maharashtra was unnatural, where only NCP and Congress had benefitted from it. In a statement, he said that they  will continue to carry forward Mr Balasaheb Thackeray’s Hindutva ideology. Mr Balasaheb Thackeray was an Indian  politician who founded the Shiv Sena, a pro-Marathi and Hindu nationalist party active in the state of Maharashtra. According to news reports, Mr Shinde also felt side-lined since the formation of Uddhav Thackrey led government in Maharashtra. 

After the walk out of the MLA’s, Shiv Sena moved a petition to impeach 16 MLAs, who supported Mr Shinde, for  missing a party meeting on 22 June. On the same day, two independent MLAs backed a no-confidence motion filed  by the Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP), which was singed by 34 other MLAs, against Mr Narhari Zirwal, Deputy Speaker  of Maharashtra Legislative Assembly. Mr Zirwal rejected the no-confidence vote which led to the Maharashtra  parliamentary office summoning and sending disqualification notices to the 16 dissident Shiv Sena MLA’s and  demanding written responses to the allegations by June 27. Challenging the disqualification notices, Mr Eknath Shinde moved the Supreme Court. 

On 29 June, Maharashtra’s Governor Mr Bhagat Singh asked the Maharashtra Legislature Secretary to hold a floor  test of Shiv-Sena led government on 30 June. This was challenged by the Shiv Sena in the Supreme Court, which  was rejected. Immediately after the Supreme Court’s refusal to intervene, Mr Uddhav Thackrey resigned from his  position of the Chief Minister. 

It was anticipated that Mr Devendra Fadnavis, leader of opposition and former CM of Maharashtra, would become  the CM for the third time. However, he announced that Mr Eknath Shinde would become the new Chief Minister and took the position of Deputy CM. 

Gateway Consulting is a public affairs firm headquartered in Gurugram, India. For more information,  please contact Tushar Gandhi, CEO on +91 8879004364 / tushar.gandhi@gatewayconsulting.co.in