Two days after the Supreme Court directed the Centre to do so, a pregnant woman who was deported to Bangladesh despite being an Indian citizen was brought back to the country along with her eight-year-old son. Sonali Khatun, who is nine months pregnant, and the child entered India on Friday in West Bengal's Malda in the presence of several officials from the district administration. Khatun, her husband, Danish Sheikh, and their eight-year-old son were among six people who were pushed across the border into Bangladesh on June 27 after being picked up by the Delhi police earlier that month on charges of being Bangladeshi citizens who had entered the country illegally. The woman's father, Bhodu Sheikh, had told the Supreme Court that she and her child were waiting on the Bangladesh side to enter India. On Wednesday, a bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi had directed the Centre to bring back Khatun, and the government had agreed to do so...
There will be no discussion on Bihar voter list revision in Parliament despite the Opposition's demand, the government has indicated, underscoring a reason cited by former Speaker Balaram Jakhar, sources have said.
The Opposition, which has been sticking to its demand for a discussion on Bihar's SIR, had raised the issue again today, and the row had delayed the discussion on Operation Sindoor.
The Opposition wanted a concrete assurance from the government that it would discuss the Special Intensive Revision of Bihar's electoral rolls immediately after the special discussion on Operation Sindoor ends.
At the time, the government had accused the Opposition of cheating.
Later, at 2 pm, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju said if the rules allow and the Speaker is ready and it is decided in the Business Advisory Committee, the government was ready to discuss any topic.
Because the government did not directly say it would discuss the issue of Bihar SIR, or refuse it, the Opposition found the assurance sufficient and the discussion on Operation Sindoor started in the Lok Sabha.
Government sources, however, made it clear that the voter list revision -- being run by the Election Commission in Bihar -- cannot be discussed in Parliament.
About this, three arguments are being considered by the government, sources said.
The first is that the campaign being run by the Central Election Commission is not an election reform. Rather, it is an administrative step and the Election Commission has been taking such steps from time to time.
The second reason is that even if a discussion is held in both the houses of Parliament on the intensive revision of the voter list, there is no one to answer the questions that the Opposition could raise.
The Election Commission cannot come to the House to present its side, sources pointed out. And although the Law Ministry is the nodal ministry for the Election Commission, it generally looks after only administrative work, and does not interfere in policy matters.
The third reason the government gave is that there are many such institutions which do not have a mechanism to present their side before the Parliament. In such situations, there cannot be a discussion about those institutions, sources said.
Government sources recounted an earlier instance when there had been a demand to discuss the functioning of the Election Commission.
In 1986, then Speaker Balram Jakhar had said comprehensive election reforms can be discussed in Parliament, but it is not possible to discuss administrative processes and decisions.
The government is now of the view that the Bihar voter list revision cannot be discussed due to these reasons.
The Opposition, however, is very aggressive on this issue and wait is on for the government's formal arguments.
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