Choose debate over disruption: Vice-President as RS productivity hits 40%

Rajya Sabha Chairman and Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar on Friday noted that disruptions in Parliament dragged the winter session’s productivity down to 40 per cent. He also urged MPs to choose “meaningful debate” over “destructive disruption”.

The concluding day of the winter session on Friday also coincided with the 75th anniversary of the Constitution. “Our celebration of Samvidhan Divas in the historic Samvidhan Sadan was meant to reaffirm democratic values, but our actions in this House tell a different story,” he stated.

He said, “This session’s productivity stands at 40.03 per cent with just 43 hours and 27 minutes of effective functioning. As parliamentarians, we are drawing severe criticism from the people of India and rightfully so. These persistent disruptions are steadily eroding public trust in our democratic institutions.”

“We did pass the Oilfields Amendment Bill and Boilers’ Bill of 2024, and heard the statement by Minister of External Affairs on India-China relations. These achievements are overshadowed by our failures,” Dhankhar added.

The Vice-President said the growing trend of publicising notices through media before parliamentary consideration and recourse to Rule 267 undermined the Rajya Sabha’s institutional dignity. “We stand at a critical crossroad as the 1.4 billion citizens of Bharat expect better from us,” he said.