Overnight protests mark the end of winter session; crucial bills passed

A productive winter session, which had marathon debates on key topics and passage of landmark bills, concluded on Friday, but after a rumbustious overnight protests by the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha to oppose the contentious VB-G Ram G bill.

- Saubhadra Chatterji and Smriti Kak Ramachandran

Both Houses of Parliament passed eight bills, including the VB-G Ram G Bill that replaces the flagship MGNREGA and The Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India Bill, 2025 that allows private enterprises in the sector and dilutes suppliers’ liability.

The Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan Bill, 2025—the legislation to set up a single regulator for higher education — has been referred to a joint committee of Parliament while The Securities Markets Code, 2025 would be sent to a standing committee for review. The Union government also imposed cess on Pan Masala and tobacco products by passing Health Security se National Security Cess Bill and amending the central excise bill.

The House held marathon debates on 150 years of Vande Mataram and electoral reforms. But parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju alleged that the Congress didn’t allow a debate on the pollution. “Three members, Priyanka Gandhi (Congress), K Kanimozhi (DMK) and Bansuri Swaraj (BJP) had given the notice for the discussion but the Congress did not allow the House to take up the discussion,” Rijiju said.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh rejected the allegations and claimed the government was disinterested to debate the raging issue. “It was not a winter session but a session during pollution. The government's allegations are baseless. The Lok Sabha was adjourned abruptly on Thursday and we couldn't discuss it.”

Ramesh said that last year the government had claimed that pollution doesn’t affect lungs.