Rajya Sabha passes MSME Amendment Bill amid Opposition protests

The Rajya Sabha passed the MSME Development (Amendment) Bill amid persistent Opposition protests over the alleged police action during student demonstrations in Delhi. Members demanded the Home Minister's presence, while the Chair repeatedly asked speakers to confine their remarks to the Bill.

New Delhi: The Rajya Sabha on Monday passed the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development (Amendment) Bill amid continuous sloganeering and protests by Opposition members, who demanded the presence of the Home Minister in the Upper House and raised issues related to the recent alleged police atrocity and violence during student protests in Delhi.

The Bill, which seeks to amend the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Act, 2006, empowers courts to order payment of at least 50 per cent of the awarded amount to MSME suppliers if an application to set aside an order remains pending for more than six months.

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When the House reassembled at 2 p.m., Deputy Chairman Harivansh Narayan Singh asked MSME Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi to move the motion for discussion on the Bill.

As the discussion began, Opposition members immediately demanded that Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge be allowed to speak first. The Deputy Chairman declined, stating that a ruling had already been given by the Chairman earlier.

Following persistent sloganeering, Kharge was permitted to speak. He began by saying, “Kya aasman gir jayega agar mujhe paanch minute sun lenge…” and then referred to the Ram Janmabhoomi issue.

Before he could complete his remarks, Leader of House J.P. Nadda intervened, asserting that the minister had already initiated the discussion and that it should continue.

Congress member Ajay Maken was then called. He expressed surprise that the Leader of Opposition was not being allowed to speak, noting that such a situation had not arisen during his long tenure in both Houses of Parliament.

When Maken linked the Bill discussion to the alleged torture of youngsters and students, the Deputy Chairman warned him that remarks not related to the Bill would not go on record.

Nadda demanded that Maken’s comments be expunged.

Given another chance, Maken assured the Chair he would stick to the Bill but pointed out the absence of the Home Minister.

Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Kiren Rijiju then stated that the member had failed to speak on the subject despite being given three opportunities.

This triggered fresh slogans from the Opposition benches, “Grih Mantri Sadan mein aao (Home Minister should come to the House)”.

Several members, including John Brittas of the CPI(M), raised points of order under Rule 258.

The Deputy Chairman observed that points of order could not be raised amid persistent disruption, yet allowed the intervention.

Brittas attempted to highlight the need for the Home Minister’s presence before being interrupted.

Despite the noisy atmosphere, several members spoke on the Bill, including Dr Santrupt Misra (BJD, Odisha), Golababurao (YSRCP, Andhra Pradesh), M. Thambidurai (AIADMK, Tamil Nadu), Rajendra Hiralal Jain (NCP, Maharashtra), Mastan Rao Yadav Beedha (TDP, Andhra Pradesh), Ravichandra Vaddiraju (BRS, Telangana), Pramod Boro (UPPL, Assam), Sanjay Seth (BJP, Uttar Pradesh) and Ramji (BSP, Uttar Pradesh).

Opposition members continued sloganeering and interrupted speakers.

CPI(M) member V. Sivadasan (Kerala) referred to the closure of some metro stations during student protests in Delhi and cases registered against MSMEs and students, insisting these were linked to the Bill.

The Chair repeatedly directed him to stick to the subject and eventually cut him short when he linked the issue of raw material availability to students’ protests.

J&K National Conference member Chowdhary Mohammad Ramzan and Congress member Praveen Chakravarthy (Tamil Nadu) also attempted to raise issues of alleged atrocities on students, but the Deputy Chairman did not permit them to continue.

Opposition members repeatedly sought to link the discussion to the closure of metro stations during student protests in Delhi and cases registered against students and MSMEs.

The Chair consistently intervened, directing them to confine their remarks to the Bill and eventually cut short some speakers. The Bill was eventually passed even as the Opposition’s sloganeering continued, demanding justice for students and the Home Minister’s presence in the House.