Speaker Condemns Deliberate Parliamentary Disruptions as Undemocratic | Current Affairs | Vision IAS
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Speaker Condemns Deliberate Parliamentary Disruptions as Undemocratic

Posted 11 Mar 2025

2 min read

Parliament's productivity has declined sharply due to frequent disruptions, with the 17th Lok Sabha functioning at 88% and Rajya Sabha at 73% of the scheduled time.

  • In the 18th Lok Sabha (Winter 2024), productivity dropped further to 54.5% and 40%, respectively, of the scheduled time

Reasons for Parliamentary Disruption:

  • Substantive Reasons:
    • Disruptions arise from controversial national or regional issues dominating public attention. E.g., Hindenburg controversy.
    • Opposition Grandstanding: Opposition disrupts proceedings to delay or block proposals, shifting focus from debate to publicity.
    • Anti-defection law (10th Schedule, introduced by the 52nd Constitutional Amendment) forces MPs to follow party whips, restricting debate and pressuring them to join disruptions.
  • Structural Reasons:
    • Increasing number of political parties reduce debate time, causing disruptions over unlisted issues.
    • Parliamentary framework lacks defined time limits for various business, like Question Hour, leading to delays

Implications of Parliamentary Disruption

  • Disruptions reduce debate time, undermining Parliament's ability to hold the government accountable and pass laws, resulting in hasty decisions.
  • Continuous disruptions lower public trust in Parliament, as MPs focus on blocking proceedings instead of solving key issues.
  • Each minute of Parliament costs ₹2.5 lakh. The 2021 logjam alone cost taxpayers ₹133 crore.
  • Tags :
  • Parliamentary Disruption
  • Hindenburg
  • Question Hour
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