[In an attempt to corner the Narendra Modi government, Congress president Sonia Gandhi and former prime minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday will march with leaders of at least ten parties from Parliament House to Rashtrapati Bhavan to protest against the Land Acquisition Ordinance. Along with the Congress, Janata Dal (United), Trinamool Congress, Samajwadi Party, CPI(M), DMK, INLD and some other parties will participate in the protest march.]
I/III. The Big Story: Unstoppable Force vs Immovable Object The Land Acquisition Amendment Bill is not going to pass the Rajya Sabha. This much is evident. But it's also not going to fail in the upper house, in which case the government wouldn't have the option of calling for a joint session to pass it either. The Congress, which for months has been wandering in the wilderness, showed the strength of its opposition to the Bill with a protest on Monday and other parties have also dug in their heels. Concerned about the inability to convince other parties in the Rajya Sabha, the Bharatiya Janata Party government is thinking of proroguing Parliament early - that is, ending the session ahead of time. This would allow it to re-promulgate the land acquisition Ordinance, which lapses on April 5. But that brings up another problem. The government's agenda includes other legislation that could pass, with a bit of floor management. Two Bills to replace ordinances are currently with select committees but members have complained they haven't been given enough time. For now, the government can't be assured of any Parliamentary victories. [Source: <http://scroll.in/article/714163/The-Daily-Fix:-Modi-might-have-been-the-unstoppable-force-but-the-Rajya-Sabha-has-become-an-immovable-object>.] II/III. http://zeenews.india.com/news/india/live-opposition-parties-to-march-against-land-bill-bsp-to-skip-protest_1562875.html LIVE: Opposition parties to march against Land Bill; BSP to skip protest Last Updated: Tuesday, March 17, 2015 - 12:10 [Video clip] Zee Media Bureau New Delhi: Opposition parties will on Tuesday hold a march against the contentious Land Acquisition Bill. Here are the live updates: We are all opposing this Bill. This Land Bill will not pass, it's a dangerous Bill - Derek O'Brien of TMC ***We are not joining this protest because it is headed by Sonia Gandhi and this can lead to a political backlash in our state - Mayawati We are not against agenda of protest. But we not not joining this protest out of party's interest - Mayawati*** [Emphasis added.] Meanwhile, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati has announced that her party will not be a part of the all-party protest against Land Bill. This is an all-party protest. We stick on to the 2013 Land Bill and we want it to continue, says Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge. Meanwhile, NCP chief Sharad Pawar has said that they have assured Dr Manmohan Singh that "as a party, we are wholeheartedly with him". It may be recalled that Dr Singh was recently summoned as an accused in a coal blocks allocation scam case. All parties will march to Rashtrapati Bhavan and give a memorandum to the President, says Congress leader Ghulam Nabi Azad. Ahead of the Opposition parties' march against Land Bill, a delegation of leaders from the Nationalist Congress Party has called on former PM Manmohan Singh at his residence in the national capital. The delegation comprised NCP chief Sharad Pawar, general secretary Tariq Anwar and senior leader Majeed Memon, among others. Also Read: 'NCP's policy on Land Acquisition Bill in accordance with opposition's stand' ***In an attempt to corner the Narendra Modi government, Congress president Sonia Gandhi and former prime minister Manmohan Singh on Tuesday will march with leaders of at least ten parties from Parliament House to Rashtrapati Bhavan to protest against the Land Acquisition Ordinance. Along with the Congress, Janata Dal (United), Trinamool Congress, Samajwadi Party, CPI(M), DMK, INLD and some other parties will participate in the protest march.*** [Emphasis added.] The Opposition parties have united over the contentious bill and are trying their level best to project the Modi-led BJP as an anti-farmer party. The leaders of the parties will submit a memorandum against the new land bill to President Pranab Mukherjee. Sources in the Opposition said that Congress is playing a key role in the protest including the finalisation of the draft of the memorandum. Former PM Manmohan Singh, JDS chief HD Devegowda, CPI-M's Sitaram Yechury, CPI's D Raja, Trinamool Congress leader Dinesh Trivedi, SP's Ramgopal Yadav, DMK's Kanimozhi, INLD's Dushyant Chautala and RJD's Prem Chand Gupta are expected to participate in the march. Sonia's attending the Opposition march tomorrow is significant as neither she nor Rahul Gandhi on sabbatical, was here today to lead the Congress protest against land acquisition at Jantar Mantar, which was a culmination of its padyatra from Bhatta Parsaul village that began four days back. Manmohan Singh's attending the event is also significant as it comes days after the Congress chief led a march from party headquarters to the former Prime Minister's residence to express solidarity after Singh was summoned in a coal scam case. Social activist Anna Hazare has appealed to the opposition parties to resist the government's attempts to pass the Bill in Rajya sabha when introduced in the Upper House. Meanwhile, the Modi Government intends to have another round of discussion with Opposition on the Land Bill before moving it in Rajya Sabha as parties including Congress, the Left and some others have escalated the protest against the measure. Related Videos Opposition to protest against Land Acquisition Bill on Tuesday ***Earlier this month, the Lok Sabha passed The Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Amendment) Bill, 2015 amid a walkout by opposition parties even as the government moved nine amendments to address concerns raised by farmers.*** [Emphasis added.] ***Shiv Sena, an ally of the Bharatiya Janata Party, abstained during the voting.*** [Emphasis added.] ***The proposed legislation removes the need for obtaining consent of land-owners and carrying out social impact assessment (SIA) for acquiring land under certain categories -- precisely the provisions which had raised the heckles of critics.*** [Emphasis added.] The bill faces a tough call in the Rajya Sabha where the government is in minority. The bill will replace an ordinance promulgated by the government in December last year which amended the earlier law passed by the Congress-led UPA in 2013. III. http://indianexpress.com/article/india/india-others/to-push-land-law-forward-govt-set-to-pause-house/99/ NATION TUESDAY, MAR 17, 2015 Land bill: Govt to prorogue parliament after March 20 to push land ordinance Written by Pradeep Kaushal | New Delhi | Updated: March 17, 2015 11:39 am With the land acquisition ordinance set to lapse on April 5 and a united opposition blocking the amendment bill in the Rajya Sabha, the government is set to prorogue parliament after March 20 to facilitate re-promulgation of the ordinance. While the budget session, which began on February 20, is set to continue till May 8, a month-long recess is scheduled from March 20 to April 20. But the government is likely to prorogue either one of the houses or both houses so that the ordinance can be issued afresh. While an ordinance has a life of six months, it has to be approved by parliament within six weeks of the commencement of the session which follows its promulgation. An ordinance cannot be re-promulgated while the house is in session. RELATED NDA Govt Pushes Through Land Bill, But Road Not Smooth Ahead In RS Session From Feb 23, Budget On Feb 28 Modi Govt To Present General Budget On February 28 Indicating the government's move, official sources said there are at least a dozen precedents of parliament being prorogued under similar circumstances. Under Article 85(2) of the Constitution, the President is vested with the power to prorogue (end a session) both houses of parliament. hile the Lok Sabha has passed the Right to Fair Compensation and Transparency in Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement (Amendment) Bill, 2015 with nine amendments, the opposition parties in the Rajya Sabha have unitedly opposed it. With the NDA government not having the required numbers in the Rajya Sabha, the only option before it is to call a joint session, but for this the bill has to be first defeated in the Rajya Sabha. "We need one more round of discussions with parties to overcome differences," said sources. But showing no signs of letting up, opposition parties, including the Congress, Left, Trinamool Congress, JD (U), Samajwadi Party, RJD and JD(S), have planned a march from parliament to Rashtrapati Bhawan on Tuesday. In a move to build pressure against re-promulgation of the ordinance, they are set to submit a memorandum to President Pranab Mukherjee against the bill. The BJP also faces stiff opposition to the bill from its ally Shiv Sena. Meanwhle, the future of two other pieces of legislation -- The Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2015 and The Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Bill, 2015 -- also remains uncertain. The Rajya Sabha constituted two select committees on March 5 to examine the bills. The committees were to submit their reports by March 18, so that the house could consider them by March 20. However, it now seems that the committees will not be able to complete their work in a week, necessitating an extension of the first leg of the session beyond March 19. Senior Congress member Digvijaya Singh, backed by party colleague Pradip Bhattacharya, D Raja of the CPI, Tiruchi Siva of the DMK and Tapan Sen of the CPI(M), today called for an extension of the tenure of the two select committees. Speaking in the Rajya Sabha during zero hour, they said the working time of just five days was inadequate for a deeper understanding and discussion. "The report cannot be completed in five days," said Singh, who is a member of the select committee on the coal mines bill. But Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said the tenure of the two committees was decided when they were set up and nothing more could be done. Official sources said any demand for extension of their tenure "would be a breach of a gentlemen's promise", because the one-week stipulation was a part of the deal struck between the two sides. They said the understanding was reached between Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu on the one side and Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad, CPI(M) floor leader Sitaram Yechury and Trinamool Congress leader Derek O'Brien on the other. "This understanding was brought to the notice of the chair also," they said. Making light of the contention that the time was inadequate, the sources said, "On the contrary, one senior opposition leader was saying that even two days would be enough." The opposition wanted to make the point that it was united and could force its view on the government. Having done this, they should not cause any delay in passing the bills, they said. 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