Parliament on Wednesday December 14 passed two Bills – the Constitution (Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes) Orders (Second Amendment) Bill, 2022 and New Delhi International Arbitration Centre (Amendment) Bill, 2022.
The Rajya Sabha passed ‘The Constitution (Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes) Orders (Second Amendment) Bill, 2022 Wednesday December 14. The Bill was already passed by the Lok Sabha earlier. It seeks to amend the Constitution (Scheduled Castes) Order, 1950 and the Constitution (Scheduled Tribes) (Uttar Pradesh) Order, 1967. It is intended to amend the SC order to exclude Gond community as a Scheduled Caste in Chandauli, Kushinagar, Sant Kabir Nagar and Sant Ravidas Nagar districts of Uttar Pradesh and also amends the ST order to recognise the community as ST in these four districts.
Replying to discussion of the Bill, Union Tribal Affairs Minister Arjun Munda said, the issue has been pending since 1980s and blamed the then Congress-led government for ignoring the plight of the community and denying them their constitutional rights through Schedule Tribes category.
Munda also moved amendments in the Bill and the Bill will again be sent to Lok Sabha for its nod on the amended Bill. Lok Sabha had passed in April this year.
The Minister said, the Uttar Pradesh government had written a letter related to the Gond community on April 22, 1981 stating that on the basis of their lifestyle, culture and from every aspect, they exhibited characters of scheduled tribes. He added that in those days, the Gond community was included under STs in other states.
The Minister ruled that the issue has remained unresolved till now with the people of the community unable to raise their voice at the Centre.
He also lamented that the then government did not implement the recommendations of the Lokur Committee for the uplift of tribals, keeping in mind their culture, lifestyle, closeness to nature and backwardness, and give them their constitutional rights. As a result, he said the country is facing the issue of tribals being left behind in the growth and development witnessed by India.
Taking a dig at the Opposition over their attitude towards tribals, Munda said if they had cared, the first woman President from tribal community Droupadi Murmu would have been elected to the top constitutional post unanimously and now some of them have even started criticising her as well.
The Rajya Sabha has also passed the ‘New Delhi International Arbitration Centre (Amendment) Bill, 2022 is to rename the New Delhi International Arbitration Centre as the India International Arbitration Centre. Lok Sabha has already passed the Bill in August 2022, which expands this to include the conduct of other forms of alternative dispute resolution besides arbitration.
Replying to the debate, Law Minister Kiren Rijiju said, this Bill will help India emerge as an attractive destination for arbitration at the global level.
India is still not a hub for arbitration, while small countries and cities have emerged as major centres for arbitration, the Minister said. He assured the members that the steps being taken by the Modi government, India would emerge as an arbitration centre in the coming years. He made it clear that the Bill was not brought under any pressure from the World Bank and it was the Government’s own decision. He said, people prefer places such as Singapore, London and Hong Kong for arbitration but after this initiative, there would be changes. The country is emerging as an economic power and along with that India will also attract the global business community for arbitration, Rijiju said. We can provide arbitration awards at more affordable charges in comparative to those centres, he said, adding that the Government wants to start work in this direction as soon as possible.
Replying to a query over the name change, Rijiju said important cities in India such as Mumbai and Kolkata have their own arbitration centres. He asserted that since 2015, India ranked 142nd in the international Ease of Doing Business and the latest assessment in 2021 puts India in 63rd rank.
Participating in the debate, Vivek K Tankha of Congress supported the Bill and said, we want India to emerge as an international arbitration centre. This is a welcome change. He cited example of the other reputed arbitration centres in the world and stated that all such centres are run by societies. He said, Singapore is doing very well and fifty-four per cent of people choose Singapore as the seat of arbitration. In South East Asia, 74 per cent choose Singapore only, he said. The member said, Indians too choose London, Geneva or Paris.
Sushil Kumar Modi of BJP also stressed on the need for improving the standard of the centre citing that Amazon Future arbitration case is going on in Singapore. He demanded that the Supreme Court and High Courts in the country should also function round the year like other institutions. He pointed out that the Apex Court and high courts go for vacation in summers as well as winters, especially when there is a huge pendency of cases.
Sukhendu Sekhar Ray of TMC said this government has come to know about the change in the name of the centre after the lapse of three year since the Act came into existence in 2019.
P Wilson of DMK also supported the Bill but pointed out that it puts 2.5 lakh rupees burden on the exchequer for running Parliament for a minute.
Prashanta Nanda of BJD and V Vijayasai Reddy of YSR Congress supported the Bill.
Soon after the House met, Opposition members led by the Congress demanded a discussion on the Indo-China conflict at the border in Tawang sector of Arunachal Pradesh. Opposition leader Mallikarjun Kharge said, several members have given adjournment notices and a discussion on Chinese aggression should be allowed in the house. The Chair disallowed the demand for discussion leading to the entire opposition staging a walkout.
Kharge said, the Opposition parties wanted a debate to get full information on the Chinese aggression and encroachment on Indian territory, and that they stand by the Army and the country.
Deputy Chairman Harivansh said there was no notice before the Chair and a debate cannot be allowed on the issue.
Opposition members shouted slogans for some time before staging a walkout. Those who walked out included members of Congress, Left, TMC, NCP, RJD, SP, JMM, and Shiv Sena.
During the zero hour, Vandana Chavan of NCP said there should be more studies to understand the impact of ‘long Covid’ on people’s health, otherwise this might end up becoming a “parallel pandemic”.
S Selvaganabathy of BJP said, the setting up an integrated pharmaceutical innovation park in Puducherry will promote the pharma industry. This will not only help it become a global leader in manufacturing of quality medicine, but also make India self-reliant in production of indigenous drugs at affordable prices, he said.
P Wilson of DMK and Sanajaoba Leishemba of BJP also raised the matters of public importance.
Earlier, the Rajya Sabha mourned the demise of former members Yoginder K Alagh and R C Singh with members observing silence.