When India becomes a 'People's Republic', the end of parliamentary democracy will be in its final stages

- The country's parliamentary democracy is on the way to collapse

- In 2010, the entire winter session of Parliament was washed away due to the resignation of a minister and the demand for setting up of JPC.

- In a parliamentary democracy the government should not be afraid of debate, because the majority of members are on its side

The US-based Freedom House has downgraded India to a "partial democracy". Sweden's V-Dam Institute has described India as an "elected autocracy". In the Democracy Index of the Economist Intelligence Unit, India's position has slipped to 53rd rank. Both the Houses of Parliament and the Members of Parliament are responsible for this decrease. Readers can also add their views to my views on how India's democracy has collapsed.

1. The opposition members raised Rule 267 of the Rules of Procedure of the Rajya Sabha to hold a debate on a matter of urgent public interest. The rule has been repeatedly raised in both houses of Parliament over the past few months to discuss pressing matters of public interest, from Chinese intrusion into India to the Hindenburg Report, but the proposal has been rejected by the Speaker each time. Conclusion: As far as the Parliament of India is concerned, there is no pressing matter of public interest which can be discussed to the exclusion of other business of the House. You have to assume that the people of India are so safe that there are hardly any serious matters that can be taken up for urgent discussion in Parliament.

Prime Minister only for the President

2. If the Prime Minister is elected to the Lok Sabha, he is the leader of the Lok Sabha. Currently, the country's Prime Minister Narendra Modi is the leader of the 17th Lok Sabha. They rarely attend both houses. He speaks only on the resolution expressing thanks to the President after his address to both Houses of Parliament every year. I don't recall him taking part in any major debate. In Parliament they do not answer questions. Most of the time a minister speaks on their behalf. Jawaharlal Nehru, Dr. Manmohan Singh or A. B. Modi's approach is very different from Prime Minister like Vajpayee. The Prime Minister has become like the 'President'. If Prime Ministers continue to be like Presidents, parliamentary democracy in India will not last long.

3. This assembly meets for 135 days in a year. In 2021, there were 59 Lok Sabha seats and 58 Rajya Sabha seats. In 2022, both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha had 58 sittings. Many seats were washed away due to disturbances. Arun Jaitley used to say that creating disturbances has become a parliamentary practice. In 2010, the entire winter session of the Parliament was washed away due to the demand for the resignation of a minister and the establishment of JPC. In that session, only six percent of the time allotted to the Lok Sabha could be used and only two percent of the time was used in the Rajya Sabha. Over time, the practice of disrupting the house has taken a new form. In the second part of the current budget session, the ruling party is being disturbed. Fewer seats and more disruptions will reduce the importance of the Parliament session. Bills will be passed without debate. We can begin to think of days when Parliament meets for just a few days in a year and sees no debates and bills are passed amid a flurry of noise.

Debate disappeared from Parliament

Both the Houses of Parliament are thus the forum for debates. There have been many historic debates in the Parliament of India. The Sino-Indian War of 1962 in which India was defeated was also discussed in the Parliament. Discussions have also been seen regarding the allegations made regarding LIC's investments. Boffers were discussed a lot. Apart from this, the issue of Babri Masjid demolition was also seen in Parliament. Many times the debates have ended without voting. In a parliamentary democracy the government should not be afraid of debate, because the majority of members are on its side, yet the current government refuses to debate. There is a saying that where the opposition has a say, the government also has its 'way'. I am sure, the government is not worried about losing its 'way', but the opposition, if given a chance, will bring the lies to light. Has India slipped into the era of non-debating Parliament? I think so. If my assumption is correct, we can conclude that the program to celebrate parliamentary democracy will soon begin.

5. Suppose a session of Parliament is convened. Suppose all members gather in a grand hall. Assume that each member votes to elect one leader as the President of the Republic of India. No votes are cast against the proposed president. The country will celebrate this result as a victory of democracy for the people.

Can this be possible in India? So the answer is, yes. Because we are currently moving towards single party rule. If fifteen states are ruled by a single party, and that party is able to elect 362 MPs to the Lok Sabha and 163 members to the Rajya Sabha, nothing can stop India from becoming a 'People's Republic'. When India becomes a 'People's Republic', the end of parliamentary democracy in India will be in its final stages.