The ruling BJP has carried out numerous rallies and protest marches in several states since the monsoon session. The social distancing norms and mandatory masks went for a toss during these rallies.
The government said there will be no winter session of Parliament this time because of the coronavirus outbreak. In a letter to a Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said that all political parties favour scrapping the session to avoid any Covid spread and jumping straight to the Budget session in January. However, Congress said it was not consulted.
This comes amid farmers’ protests intensifying with no final conclusion to the talks held by the government with farmers. In the wake of such a situation, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury had written to minister demanding a session to discuss controversial new farm laws that are at the core of massive farmer protests on highways near Delhi.
There were also some reports suggesting that the Narendra Modi-led government was reportedly planning to convene a special session of parliament to amend sections of the agricultural laws. However, with the cancellation of the winter session, the chances of the special session taking place are bleak.
This decision by the centre has been perceived as the BJP chickening out from confrontations and questions amid growing farmers’ protests. However, the reason cited by the centre has also been slammed by its critics. The winter session was cancelled citing ‘Covid’ worries, however, the centre rammed the farm laws through both the houses of parliament during the monsoon session. The pandemic was raging back then and has comparatively subsided.
The ruling BJP has carried out numerous rallies and protest marches in several states since the monsoon session. The social distancing norms and mandatory masks went for a toss during these rallies.
On October 23, in his first rally in Bihar one week before the elections, Prime Minister Narendra Modi praised Chief Minister Nitish Kumar over his handling of coronavirus pandemic. On the very day, according to official data, Bihar reported 749 new cases of infections and had a 7 day average of 1129 cases. However, there was hardly any attendees in PM Modi’s rally who were seen wearing masks or practising physical distancing.
BJP’s MP leader Jyotiraditya Scindia himself tweeted the video of his rally during the by-polls campaign on 21 October. On the same day, Madhya Pradesh had reported 1,118 new cases of Covid-19 infections and had a 7 day average of 1,146 cases. In this video posted by Mr Scindia, it can clearly be seen that the physical distancing was no observed by the attendees.
हम सभी को एक बार पुनः विकास और प्रगति के मार्ग को प्रशस्त करते हुए कमल के पुष्प पर अपना बहुमूल्य मत देकर भाजपा को विजयी बनाकर प्रगति के द्वार को खोलना है । pic.twitter.com/NmnsgPGixw
— Jyotiraditya M. Scindia (@JM_Scindia) October 21, 2020
After winning the Bihar polls, the BJP unleashed all its A-listers for mere civic body polls in Hyderabad. Party President JP Nadda, UP CM Adityanath, Home Minister Amit Shah campaigned for the party.
On November 28, JP Nadda held a roadshow and asserted that the BJP will not rest until it conquers Hyderabad and then Telangana. On the same day, Telangana reported 805 new cases and had a 7-day average of 814 cases. Though, pictures from Mr Nadda’s rally show little social distancing and safety norms being followed by the supporters.
Ironically, a fine of Rs 250 was imposed on Member of Parliament Tejasvi Surya for not wearing a face mask while attending a political rally in September. The action came after the Karnataka HC asked the State government whether or not it has levied fine from Tejasvi Surya and other political leaders for not wearing masks while attending political rallies.
BJP Chief JP Nadda, General Secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya and new BJYM president Tejaswi Surya have been visiting West Bengal where they have conducted meetings and protest marches. One such protest turned violent when BJP workers reportedly clashed with police. Recently, Kailash Vijayvargiya and JP Nadda’s vehicles were attacked in Bengal, according to reports. Shortly after that, the BJP chief said he had tested positive for Covid-19. “I request everyone who has come in contact with me in the last few days to please isolate yourself and get yourself checked,” Mr Nadda appealed.
In various instances, BJP and its leaders have been caught violating or not following safety precautions amid the pandemic. Moreover, there have been protests and marches from the party where these norms were thrown out of the window. When BJP says winter session of parliament is cancelled because of the concerns over Covid, the aforementioned instances speak the volume of hypocrisy shown by the saffron party.
The centre needs to understand that stretching the farmers’ issues will only escalate the situation around the national capital, at a time when the whole system should be focusing upon the recovery of our wounded economy. Winter session, more than anything, would have shown that the centre is willing to listen to the opposition, which it didn’t do while ramming the three bills through both houses of parliament.
If the centre can organise the Monsoon session in the middle of a pandemic to pass important agriculture reforms in parliament without any consultations or discussions, why is it running away from calling a Winter session or a special session when thousands of farmers have been sitting at the borders of Delhi since weeks?
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