LS, RS face disruptions, oppn to intensify pressure over Adani, Rahul row

Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha faced disruptions for the third successive day on Wednesday with Congress and other opposition parties insisting on their demand for Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the Adani-Hindenburg row and the BJP members seeking apology from Rahul Gandhi over his remarks made in London.

The second half of budget session began on Monday and has been marked by disruptions and ruckus over the last three days. BJP has accused Congress leader Rahul Gandhi of maligning India's institutions on foreign soil.

Both the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha were adjourned till 2 pm and then for the rest of the day. Amid the din, a bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha to give disciplinary powers to commanders of tri services organisations over all the personnel from all three forces serving under them.

Opposition parties sought to build pressure on their demand and embarked on a protest march to Enforcement Directorate (ED) office.

Leaders from Congress and sixteen other opposition parties took part in the protest march from Parliament House to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) office to hand over a memorandum over the Adani issue.

Members from Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Trinamool Congress (TMC) were not present.

Rashtriya Janata Dal, Communist Party of India, Communist Party of India (Marxist), Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), Janata Dal (United), Samajwadi Party (SP), Jammu and Kashmir National Conference (JKNC), Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray), Rashtriya Lok Dal (RLD), All India United Democratic Front (AIUDF), Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) and Revolutionary Socialist Party (RSP) participated in the march.

The leaders also wrote a letter to ED Director to register complaint and said the agency has not launched even a preliminary enquiry into allegations in the wake of Hindenburg-Adani row.

Heavy security was deployed both at Vijay Chowk and in front of the ED office in view of the protest march, and the marching legislators were stopped soon after they reached Vijay Chowk.The stalemate in Parliament is likely to continue with neither the BJP or the opposition parties showing any signal of budging from their stand.

Congress has ruled out an apology from Rahul Gandhi. The Congress leader has returned to the country from his visit abroad.

The government pushed its legislative agenda amid the din with Minister of State for Defence Ajay Bhatt introducing Inter-Services Organisations (Command, Control and Discipline) Bill, 2023.

The bill states that the central government may "by notification, constitute an Inter-services Organisation, which may include a Joint Services Command, comprising of units or service personnel who are subject to any of the Service Acts, as may be placed under the command of the Commander-in-Chief or, as the case may be, the Officer-in-Command."

It has been introduced at a time in Parliament when the Defence Ministry is working on the creation of theatre commands to tackle threats in changing security environment. The post of Chief of Defence Staff has been created to work in this direction.

The bill seeks to "empower the Commander-in-Chief or the Officer-in-Command of Inter-services Organisations in respect of service personnel who are subject to the Air Force Act, 1950, the Army Act, 1950 and the Navy Act, 1957, who are serving under or attached to his command, for the maintenance of discipline and proper discharge of their duties" and for related matters.

The bill also states the Commander-in-Chief or, as the case may be, Officer-in-Command of an Inter-services Organisation, shall be the head of such Inter-services Organisation and shall exercise command and control over the personnel serving in or attached to that Inter-services Organisation, for the purpose of maintenance of discipline and proper discharge of their duties.

CDS Gen Anil Chauhan has been working with the three services chiefs to create the operational tri- services organisations or theatre commands to strengthen the forces to fight future battles.He has been briefing top brass of the government on the work being done in the direction of improving jointness and increasing integration among the forces as directed by the Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The statement of the objects and reasons of the bill states that a need arises to empower the Commander-in-Chief and Officer-inCommand of the Inter-services Organisations to exercise control over the service personnel serving under or attached under their command, for maintenance of discipline and proper discharge of their duties,without disturbing the unique service conditions or amending the Service Acts.

The bill is an enabling legislation, which empowers the Heads of the Inter-services Organisations to exercise effective command, control and discipline on all personnel of regular Air Force, Army and Navy and to persons of other forces as notified by the Central Government, who are serving in or attached to an Inter-services Organisation, without amending the respective Acts.

The report of Joint Committee on the Multi-State Cooperative Societies (Amendment) Bill 2022 was also presented in parliament.