The absence of procedural mechanisms for deliberating on contentious issues is at the heart of parliamentary dysfunction. It has led to the current impasse between the government and the Opposition and the resulting unprecedented situation. Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha suspended 141 Opposition Members ...
At about 10 am on September 24, 1951, Hucheshwar Gurusidha Mudgal stood up to clear his name in Parliament. Mudgal was a member of the Provisional Parliament, the national legislature that preceded the first elected Lok Sabha in 1952.
September had been a busy month for this law-ma...
A short history of India’s legislative chambers shows why the December 13 breach shouldn’t lead to limited public access
The inviolability of legislatures is at the heart of democracy. Yesterday, two irresponsible citizens broke this basic tenet. They opened a smoke canister and jumpe...
On December 8, the Lok Sabha expelled one of its members, Mahua Moitra, from the membership of the House. The minister for parliamentary affairs Pralhad Joshi, moved a motion for her expulsion. It stated that Moitra’s conduct (of sharing her parliamentary credentials and accepting money and am...
