Parliament Winter Session 2023 Highlights: Rajya Sabha passes J&K Reservation, J&K Reorganisation (Amendment) Bills

The Lok Sabha will witness discussions on the Post Office Bill, 2023, which was passed by the Rajya Sabha on December 3 this year.

The Rajya Sabha on December 12 cleared two key legislations -- the Jammu & Kashmir Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill, 2023 and the Jammu & Kashmir Reservation (Amendment) Bill, 2023.

The reorganisation amendment bill seeks to nominate two members from the Kashmiri migrant community and one representing the displaced persons from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) to the legislative assembly. The legislation also increases the Union territory's Assembly effective strength to 90 seats from 83 at present.

The Jammu & Kashmir Reservation (Amendment) Bill proposed to replace the phrase "weak and under-privileged classes" with "other backward classes" in the Kashmir Reservation Act of 2004, that governs quota for jobs and education in J&K.

Both the Bills sailed through with a majority as the Opposition staged a walkout shortly before the voting was conducted.

The Rajya Sabha proceedings were adjourned till December 12 following the passage of the legislations.

Before the Bills were put to vote, Union Home Minister Amit Shah addressed the House and hailed the Supreme Court verdict upholding the validity of the Centre's decision to abrogate Article 370 that granted special status to Jammu and Kashmir.

"This is an important day as both these Bills will be passed and also because this will be written in golden letters in the history of J&K and India. Today, Supreme Court upheld the intention behind Jammu and Kashmir (Reorganisation) Bill, 2019, its constitutional validity and the process," he said. "Several questions were raised even the day before yesterday. In Lok Sabha, it was said that the Bill is pending and is being brought in haste. Supreme Court will do justice and we should wait for it. All these stands were not for justice but to halt the decisions taken by PM Modi," he said.

Notably, the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation Act paved the way for the restructuring of the state into the Union territories of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. The Act amends the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly's composition, increasing the total seats from 83 to 90.

#WATCH | Union Home Minister Amit Shah speaks on the Jammu and Kashmir Reservation (Amendment) Bill, 2023 and Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill, 2023 in the Rajya Sabha.

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He says, "Several questions were raised even the day before yesterday. In Lok Sabha, it was… pic.twitter.com/q5YgZDVpcz

— ANI (@ANI) December 11, 2023

"Tiruchi Siva (DMK MP) should make it clear if he is speaking on DMK's agenda to bring back Article 370 or is it the agenda of the entire INDI alliance..." said Shah after tabling the bills.

DMK MP Tiruchi Shiva recently affirmed the party's commitment to securing state rights within the constitutional framework. This statement came in the aftermath of a vigorous debate in the Rajya Sabha, initiated by DMK MP Mohammed Abdullah, who invoked Periyar's ideas to advocate for the right to self-determination for all races.

Besides this, the Repealing and Amending Bill, 2022, which aims to repeal 65 laws that are obsolete or that have been made redundant by other laws, will be introduced for consideration and passing in the Rajya Sabha. The Lok Sabha, on the other hand, will witness discussions on the Post Office Bill, 2023, which was passed by the Rajya Sabha on December 3 this year.

Proceeding begin in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha

• The panel of Vice-Chairpersons was re-constituted w.e.f. December 11, 2023, Vice President and RS Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar informed the Rajya Sabha. The members include:

Saroj Pandey

Jaya Bachchan

Priyanka Chaturvedi

Dr C M Ramesh

Akhilesh Prasad singh

Tiruchi Shiva

Sushil Kumar Gupta

• BJP MPs protested near the Gandhi Statue in Parliament over recovery of unaccounted cash from Congress leader Dhiraj Sahu during the raids by Income Tax Department.
• BJP national president J P Nadda, during a protest by the BJP MPs against Congress leaders, near the Gandhi Statue in Parliament over recovery of unaccounted cash from Congress leader Dhiraj Sahu during raids by I-T Department, said that corruption and Congress are two sides of the same coin.
• Both the Houses — Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha — resumed their sessions at 2 pm, after being adjourned earlier in the day.
• MPs from Trinamool Congress, Aam Aadmi Party, Congress, SP, JDU, DMK, RJD, NCP, CPI(M), CPI, Shiv Sena (UBT) and other INDIA parties staged a walkout from Rajya Sabha protesting the Centre's economic blockade of funds to states run by non-BJP parties.
• The External Affairs Ministry issued a statement in the Lok Sabha correcting the name of the minister who replied to a Parliament question on the designation of Hamas on December 8.
• Discussion and voting on Supplementary Demands for Grants – First Batch for 2023-2024 and Demands for Excess Grants for 2020-2021 underway for consideration and passing in Lok Sabha.
• BJP MP Gulam Ali voiced his support for the J&K Reservation and Reorganisation Amendment Bill, emphasising that the legislation would be advantageous for the people of Kashmir.
• CPI MP Sandosh Kumar criticised the BJP, accusing it of behaving like a "self-imposed constitution in Kashmir".