Oppn looks to corner govt on SIR as Parl starts today

The Opposition’s insistence on having a debate on the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls might lead to a turbulent winter session of Parliament that commences on Monday and will conclude on December 19.

- Saubhadra Chatterji and Smriti Kak Ramachandran

The government, which has listed 10 new bills for introduction during the upcoming session, has decided to hold a discussion on 150 years of Vande Mataram, India’s national song.

In the three meetings held on Sunday—an all-party meet chaired by defence minister Rajnath Singh and the Business Advisory Committee (BAC) ‘meetings of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha — debate on the SIR was the central theme of the Opposition’s demands. While Samajwadi Party lawmaker Ramgopal Yadav warned that House will not be allowed to function without a debate on SIR, other Opposition leaders told the government that it would be the latter's responsibility if the House does not run, people aware of the matter said.

After the all-party meeting, parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju said: “No leader said that they will not allow the House to run over SIR. On behalf of government, I assure that we will continue to discuss in order to run the House smoothly. In democracy, there are differences between the parties. Despite differences, the House should not be disturbed to improve productivity.”

According to functionaries, defence minister Singh sought the cooperation of all political parties in smooth conduct of the upcoming session of Parliament.