New Delhi [India], December 18: Both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha were adjourned till 2:00 PM today following protests by the opposition over Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s remarks regarding Dr. B.R. Ambedkar in the Rajya Sabha.
Congress MP Manickam Tagore raised an adjournment motion in the Lok Sabha, accusing Amit Shah of “insulting” Dr. Ambedkar’s legacy and “hurting the sentiments” of millions who revere him. In his motion, Tagore referred to Shah’s comments made during a two-day discussion in the Rajya Sabha on December 17, 2024, where he criticized the Congress party for frequently invoking Ambedkar’s name, suggesting that they would have attained “heaven for seven lives” had they taken God’s name as often.
Tagore described Shah’s remarks as “blasphemous” and claimed it was an attempt to undermine Ambedkar’s significant role in drafting the Indian Constitution.
Earlier in the session, the Constitution (129th Amendment) Bill, proposing the ‘One Nation, One Election’ policy, was introduced and sent to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for further discussions. The Bill seeks to hold simultaneous elections for the Lok Sabha and state assemblies, a proposal that has faced opposition criticism, particularly for its potential impact on India’s federal structure.
The Lok Sabha also witnessed a vote on the Bill’s introduction, with 269 members in favor and 196 against. Following the vote, Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal introduced a series of other amendments aimed at aligning assembly elections in Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, and Puducherry with the proposed ‘One Nation, One Election’ system.
Despite the introduction of the Bills, the opposition raised concerns, arguing that they undermine the basic structure of the Constitution and pose a threat to federalism by centralizing power.