Sir, this is a serious issue. We want a debate in this House. We want the debate to continue. But the Prime Minister has said a lot of things outside the House, painting all political parties in a very poor light. He needs to come here and tender an apology. Let us carry on with the debate after that.
Trinamool Congress today urged the Centre to withdraw the draconian decision of demonetisation for the time being and give people some breathing space.
Trinamool voiced its concerns about this ‘financial emergency’ at an All-Party Meeting ahead of the Winter Session of Parliament. Sudip Bandyopadhyay (Leader of the party in Lok Sabha) and Derek O’Brien (Leader of the party in Rajya Sabha) represented Trinamool at the meeting.
“Trinamool was the first party to submit a Suspension Notice in Rajya Sabha on November 10. We are happy other parties followed us,” Sudip Bandyopadhyay said.
“We outlined the suffering of the common people due to demonetisation. We maintained that a proper plan of action is needed before proceeding. This is a hasty, unprepared decision” he added.
“Trinamool is not in favour of black money. We are the first party to wear black shawls in Parliament as a mark of protest,” said the veteran leader.
Trinamool also raised the issues of surgical strike in Jammu & Kashmir, federalism, state funding of elections and OROP implementation at the meet. The party also demanded that the Citizenship Bill be withdrawn.
As the All Party Meet began, Sudip Bandyopadhyay announced that Trinamool Congress has now been recognised as a National Party. This announcement was greeted with thumping of desks by representatives of all parties.
আজ সর্বদল বৈঠকে নোট বাতিলের এই হঠকারী সিদ্ধান্তকে প্রত্যাহার করার এবং সাধারণ মানুষকে আর কিছু সময় দেওয়ার আর্জি জানিয়েছে তৃণমূল।
সংসদের শীতকালীন অধিবেশনের আগে সর্বদল বৈঠকে দেশে অর্থনৈতিক জরুরী অবস্থা চলছে বলে উদ্বেগ প্রকাশ করে তৃণমূল। লোকসভার দলনেতা সুদীপ বন্দ্যোপাধ্যায় এবং রাজ্যসভার দলনেতা ডেরেক ও ব্রায়েন তৃণমূলের প্রতিনিধি হিসাবে বৈঠকে উপস্থিত ছিলেন।
সুদীপ বন্দ্যোপাধ্যায় বলেন, তৃণমূল কংগ্রেস প্রথম দল যারা রাজ্য সভায় সাসপেনশন নোটিস দিয়েছে। আমরা খুশি যে অন্য দলেরাও আমাদের অনুসরণ করেছে।
তিনি আরও বলেন, “নোট বাতিলের জন্য সাধারণ মানুষের চরম ভোগান্তি হচ্ছে। এই প্রক্রিয়া চালু করার আগে একটি সঠিক পরিকল্পনা করার প্রয়োজন ছিল। এটা একটা হঠকারী সিদ্ধান্ত”।
সাংসদ জানান, “তৃণমূল কালো টাকার পক্ষে নয়। আমরাই প্রথম দল যারা সংসদে কালো শাল গায়ে দিয়ে কালো টাকার বিরুদ্ধে প্রতিবাদ জানিয়েছে”।
এদিন সর্বদল বৈঠকে জম্মু ও কাশ্মীরে সার্জিক্যাল স্ট্রাইকের ইস্যু, যুক্ত রাষ্ট্রীয় পরিকাঠামো, নির্বাচনী সংস্কার, ওআরওপি বাস্তবায়ন এই সব বিষয়ও উত্থাপিত করে তৃণমূল কংগ্রেস। এদিন নাগরিকত্ব বিল প্রত্যাহার করার দাবিও জানায় তৃণমূল।
সর্বদল বৈঠক শুরু হওয়ার সঙ্গে সঙ্গেই সুদীপ বন্দ্যোপাধ্যায় জানান, তৃণমূল কংগ্রেস এখন জাতীয় দল হিসাবে স্বীকৃতি পেয়েছে। এই ঘোষণার সঙ্গে সঙ্গে সব দলের প্রতিনিধিরা তাদের অভিনন্দন জানান।
The Trinamool Congress on Thursday gave a notice in the Rajya Sabha to suspend business on November 16 and discuss the demonetisation of Rs 1,000 and Rs 500 currency notes.
“Today (Thursday) we gave a notice in the Rajya Sabha to discuss the issue suspending business under Rule 267 on November 16,” Leader of the party in Rajya Sabha, Derek O’Brien said.
He said it was vital that the black money hoarders and the corrupt were punished, but it must not be done by inconveniencing the common people and the poor. He added that there must be a proper action plan for implementation of such an extensive move which directly affects millions, especially the middle class and the poor.
Hitting out at the Centre over the decision, Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had earlier said the demonetisation has resulted in a “complete disaster and chaos” and had urged the Modi government to rescind the “hasty decision”.
“Please save people from this disaster. Roads are closed, markets shut, patients not being admitted to private hospitals, millions affected. Chaos everywhere,” Mamata Banerjee had said on Wednesday.
৫০০, ১০০০ টাকার নোট বাতিলের সিদ্ধান্ত নিয়ে আগামী ১৬ নভেম্বর রাজ্যসভায় আলোচনা চেয়ে নোটিস দিয়েছে তৃণমূল সংসদীয় দল৷
রাজ্যসভায় তৃণমূলের দলনেতা ডেরেক ও’ব্রায়েন জানান আজ (বৃহস্পতিবার) ২৬৭ নম্বর ধারা অনুযায়ী অন্য কাজ ফেলে রাজ্যসভায় ‘নোট-ব্যান’-এর মতো গুরুত্বপূর্ণ বিষয় নিয়ে আলোচনার জন্য নোটিস দেওয়া হয়েছে৷
তিনি বলেন, “কালো টাকার মালিকদের শাস্তি পাওয়া উচিত কিন্তু সাধারণ মানুষ ও গরিবকে হয়রান করে নয়। আগে থেকেই সঠিক পরিকল্পনা নেওয়া উচিত ছিল৷ ভুল পরিকল্পনার মাশুল দিয়েছেন মধ্যবিত্ত ও গরিব মানুষ৷ কালো টাকা উদ্ধারে কোনও কাজই করেনি কেন্দ্র৷”
আগেই কেন্দ্রের এই সিদ্ধান্তে তীব্র ক্ষোভ প্রকাশ করেন মমতা বন্দ্যোপাধ্যায়। তিনি বলেন, “মোদী সরকারের এই সিদ্ধান্ত ‘হঠকারী’, এটা সম্পূর্ণরূপে একটি বিপর্যয়”।
বুধবার তিনি সোশ্যাল নেটওয়ার্কিং সাইটে বলেন, “এই বিপর্যয় থেকে সাধারণ মানুষকে বাঁচান। রাস্তা অবরুদ্ধ। বাজার বন্ধ। বেসরকারি হাসপাতালে রোগীদের ভর্তি নেওয়া হচ্ছে না। চারদিকে বিশৃঙ্খল পরিস্থিতি”।
Full Transcript
Sir, thank you so much for allowing me a little time to raise this very important issue.
There is a video which the television channels across the country are running. Even when they are doing so, they are running a disclaimer saying that they are not responsible for the content of that video. In this day of technology, no one knows whether the video is authentic or doctored.
I am not getting into that, Sir. The issue is much bigger issue. Sir, the issue is that when these so called sting operations are done, what is the credibility of the people who do this?
Sir, I can say this with all responsibility that through this company foreign funds are coming into the country before elections. Sir, if you check the call records of this gentleman you would find that five calls were made to Dubai on the morning that this video was released.
This company, Sir, is registered at Post Box N: 235328 Ismail Abdulla Mohd. Buhumaid Building near Al Quasis Bus Station, Damascus Road, Al Qusais Industrial – 4, Dubai.
Sir, this is a bigger issue for the whole House. Why is foreign money coming here? Sir, let us not judge that video; first judge the source of the video, the credibility of the video.
Sir, we would like all journalists to have the independent power to investigate. Sir, we would like professional journalists to have the right to do any kind of investigation.
But who is this journalist? He is not a journalist, Sir. He is a money bag; he is a shot waiting to be hired. Check out his credibility. What does he say in the last line of his press release? He says, “Five years ago, there was a parivartan in Bengal, now it is time for a new parivartan.”
Are these the words of a journalist?
Sir, the Trinamool Congress has a reputation. A leader like Mamata Di represents transparency and credibility. This is political opportunism.
Fight us politically and not with this doctored video.
Speaking on the Juvenile Justice Bill, 2014 in the Rajya Sabha, leader of the party in the Upper House, Derek O’Brien today said that juvenile justice should be based on the foundation of reform and rehabilitation.
Reform and Rehabilitation
“There are good bills, very good bills and ideal bills. The Juvenile Justice Bill a good bill. Let us pass it rather than wait indefinitely for an ideal Bill.”
Derek also cautioned against pitting women’s rights against child rights. “If one follows the Bill’s debate, irrespective of the outcome, it’s disappointing to see child rights being pegged against women’s rights,” he said.
He mentioned that repeat offenders among juvenile accounts for only five per cent while the figure is 17 per cent in the US. He stressed that the focus of the government should be on implementation of the Bill. “The bigger job is to ensure juvenile homes function properly. We also need to work very hard to work on education system,” added.
Three amendments
Maintaining that if any juvenile turns out to be a criminal it is a collective failure of the society, Derek suggested three amendments to the Bill:
1. Broadening maximum sentence from 3 years to 7-10 years, to be on the safer side and to provide more cushion for reform of the juvenile.
2. After release, juvenile should be offered not just financial support but educational support & counselling services, too.
3. There is a different penalty for selling a child (5 years) and giving drugs to a child (7 years). This must be looked into.
He also congratulated all sides of the political spectrum for coming together to legislate on this sensitive subject.
The Rajya Sabha today had a debate on the hike in the excise duty on petrol and diesel. In spite of international crude prices falling from 115$ per barrel to 35$ a barrel, the government has increased excise duty of fuel by 17 per cent, thus burdening the common man.
Taking part in the debate, the Union Finance Minister Mr Arun Jaitley said that States like West Bengal and Bihar increased VAT on petroleum goods in the last one year.
Leader of party in Rajya Sabha, Derek O’Brien countered Mr Arun Jaitley’s claim and said he was factually incorrect.
“Bengal did not raise VAT on petrol in the past one year. Bengal capped VAT rate in January, 2015,” he said. He also mentioned that the rate of tax on diesel in West Bengal is 17%, and the rate of tax on petrol is 25%.
Derek O’Brien also asked the Chair to set the record straight.
All India Trinamool Congress was once again seen playing the role of a responsible Opposition in Rajya Sabha today. Trinamool dominated the proceedings of the House during the first one hour as party MPs raised three key issues of public importance.
Leader of the party in Rajya Sabha, Derek O’Brien said, “My colleagues Dola Sen and Nadimul Haque spoke in Rajya Sabha today on three key issues – funds to States, Swaach Bharat cess & education. We believe in deliberate, debate and legislate.”
Dola Sen spoke about the burden Centre’s Swachh Bharat cess is causing on the poor people. “Services that the government is actively championing for the rural poor including mobile and financial services just became more expensive and difficult for them to access,” she said.
Click here for the full transcript of her speech
She also slammed the Centre as she made a Special Mention on the reduced funding for several central schemes. “The Government must explain how State Governments are to carry on critical welfare programmes, and ensure development in the states without adequate funds,” she demanded to know.
Click here for the full transcript of her speech
Nadimul Haque raised an important matter concerning the education sector. He made a Special Mention about the shortage of faculty in Indian universities. “his inadequacy of our faculty appointments and selection systems is gravely affecting the quality of education that students of higher education are receiving,” he said.
Click here for the full transcript of his speech
Meanwhile, in Lok Sabha, leader of the party, Sudip Bandyopadhyay urged the Centre to include Belur-Dakkhineshwar in the list of sites for religious tourism. “Belur is Swami Vivekananda’s dream; Ramakrishna Paramhansa Dev’s name is associated with Dakkhineshwar,” he said.
Sudip Banerjee added that in 2013-2014 & 2014-15 the Centre had not allotted a single rupee for the state of West Bengal. He requested the Centre not to neglect West Bengal and promote spiritual tourism sites in the State.
Click here for the full transcript of his speech
Post lunch, Sudip Bandyopadhyay spoke in Lok Sabha about the prevailing drought situation in the country. He urged the Centre to come up with a positive action plan and requested the government not to neglect the eastern zone of the country
Click here for the full transcript of his speech
In a discussion on the Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Bill, 2014, Vivek Gupta spoke in RS on the demerits in the Bill brought by the government. He listed how several definitions of corruption do not find place in the Bill. Gupta echoed the view of party Chairperson Mamata Banerjee by calling for electoral reforms.
Click here for the full transcript of his speech
During another discussion on the India-Nepal relations in Rajya Sabha, Nadimul Haque made a passionate case for normalising the ties of the countries. He said that Madhesis were like our brothers and India has a duty towards them. He hoped Government of Nepal would reciprocate the warmth shown by Government of India during Nepal earthquake.
We completely endorse what the home minister said. When it comes to giving relief to Chennai, our thought and prayers may also be with Tamil Nadu and Chennai. Be very very generous in this hour of need.
Sir, the one point we have to make this that the central team was sent to Bengal. In Bengal it was a huge calamity. The number of deaths was low because the preparedness was high. The question is that as the Home Minister has himself said in the statement that, what is this arbitrary way of giving out funds? Out of the 10,700 cr, we have received 300 cr in Bengal. Sir, are we begging for funds?
Sir, Tamil Nadu must be taken care of now, give everything to Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh now but what about Bengal? The central team comes, but why is Bengal deprived? This is a calamity in Bengal which happened?
I am sorry to say, we have written to the Prime Minister. We are with Chennai, we are with Tamil Nadu, people are dying there. Sir, Chennai and Tamil Nadu is the need of the hour but do not forget Bengal. Sir, we are compelled with a heavy heart to walk out in protest about the funds which are not being given to Bengal.
Leaders of Trinamool Congress today expressed solidarity with the people of Tamil Nadu while questioning the Central Government why Bengal has been deprived of funds for flood and drought relief.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Tamil Nadu and Andhra. Give aid to Tamil Nadu and Andhra. They deserve your attention. We are with them. But why is Bengal being deprived,” asked Derek O’Brien, leader of the party in Rajya Sabha.
His sentiments were echoed by Sudip Banerjee, leader of the party in Lok Sabha. “I wanted to know categorically that what is the system of allotment of money, the central team goes and comes back, but the amount that is decided is not fixed in consultation with the Chief Ministers of the states or their representatives, it is suo motu. They take the decision absolutely on their own,” he said.
West Bengal government had soughts funds to the tune of Rs 6,000 crore due to the flood and Rs 4,000 crore due to drought. WB CM has written several letters to the Prime Minister in this regard.
Sukhendu Sekhar Roy wanted the Home Minister to clarify if the Rs 300 crore fund released by SDRF was an interim relief.
Derek O’Brien insisted that the Centre give full attention to Tamil Nadu and Andhra but not deprive Bengal in the process.
Click here for full transcript of Sudip Bandyopadhyay’s speech
Good afternoon Chennai, good afternoon Tamil Nadu. May you have the strength, may you have the determination to deal with whatever nature has thrown at you and will continue to throw at you over the next few days. And there is no reason to doubt that Chennai and Tamil Nadu will stand together bravely. The speaker from the DMK set the tone for this discussion by rising above politics.
Sir, the first thing is a piece of information that is available and I would like to share, because if we share it in the House more people would get to know. For those people who are affected either for shelter, for food or for rescue operations, there is a website ‘chennairains.org’ which is a crowdsourced list which anyone can go to and use. Thousands of people have offered their homes, food and schools as shelter.
A hundred days ago a similar, very big disaster had hit Bengal. Now that disaster is out of the media, I will come back to that in a while.
Sir, when disasters like this happen, one way is to make a few points which will help in the preparedness. Sir, the suggestion we have first is the chain of command. The National Disaster Response Force is under the authority of the National Disaster Management Authority but also reports directly to the Home Ministry. This is a very complicated process and we suggest making it more efficient; you have to change the style of reporting.
The second point I have is on fund utilisation. The NDRF budget for the year 2014-15 was Rs 200 crore. I was looking at those figures yesterday and I was disappointed to not that out of the Rs 200 crore only Rs 7.11 crore has been allotted, and the budget for this year has gone up from Rs 200 to 255 crore, and as we close in March, make sure that Rs 7 crore reaches as close to Rs 255 crore as possible.
Sir, there are some issues with infrastructure; since the minister is here I will not go into the details of the infrastructure issues. But eight out of the 10 battalions of the NDRF do not have any permanent buildings. And the NDMA has a bigger space because they report to the Prime Minister so they have 75,000 sq ft of office space which is very good. But the NDRF is operating in 4,000 sq ft, which I dare say is just about enough for a quarter of an MP.
The last suggestion, Sir, is the CAG report. The CAG report that we went through and was submitted before the Parliament said and I quote, “the NDMA is ill prepared to handle a potential natural or man-made disaster”. This is the CAG report; let’s take cognizance of that Sir.
Sir, I want to draw your attention to Komen flood that hit Bengal. Now I have no issue that Tamil Nadu has asked for Rs 8,800 crore and they have been granted Rs 7,000 crore. But let me tell you what happened a hundred days ago Bengal where the number of lives lost was 100.
Now the point I want to make is please do not penalize those state governments who have taken preventive measures to ensure that less number of lives are lost. I think the other good example was Odisha; when you take preemptive measures you move lakhs of people to get them to safe zone. So keep that in mind, Sir.
This is not about Bengal or Tamil Nadu or Odisha or Andhra but just look at this. Sir, the state exchequer has spent Rs 1,572 crore. Sir, since you are writing these numbers I will ask you to write one more number please, with all humility. The total which Bengal has asked for is Rs 6,400 crore. I have not come here today with the begging bowl just because the disaster has happened in Chennai. My Chief Minister, who is also the party chief of Trinamool Congress, on August the 7th wrote a detailed letter to no less a person than the Hon’ble Prime Minister of India. The point we were making in that letter was about the Damodar Valley Corporation. In all these power projects be careful that you do not hurt the Damodor Valley Corporation DVC because that’s when lots more floods can happen.
Sir, another detailed follow up letter was written later in August. We have got Rs 270 crore that also I was told informally the cheque is in the mail. Now from Rs 6500 crore and it’s not comparing to Chennai or Tamil Nadu or Andhra, the state has exchequer has spent Rs 1572 crore. I am not only talking about Komen; there was also a big landslide disaster in Darjeeling also.
Sir, 13 lakh hectares of agricultural land is inundated. That is a lot of land. We are requesting you to consider a program of loan weaver or restructuring farm loans. Perhaps you could do the same.
At the end of all these speech the only message I want to live you, Sir, is please write out some cheques not because of any charity; you need to do. But wWe have taken some serious steps in Bengal to preempt the disaster.
Let us look at the SDRF figures. These are figures allocated from 2015 to 2020, over the next five years. Maharashtra: Rs 8,200 crore, Madhya Pradesh: Rs 5000 crore, Rajasthan: Rs 6000 crore, West Bengal: Rs 2000 odd crore.
Sir there are very few states in this country which are both prone to drought and to cyclone. Bengal is one of those states, Maharashtra is one of those states, Tamil Nadu is one of those states, also Odisha.
The bigger point is, Sir certain promises have been made and I am certain that the Government will look seriously into this as they are doing in Chennai , so that four five months later I don’t need to stand up here again and plead so humbly for funds.
Thank you Sir.
