New Delhi: There’s some good news even before the Budget 2025 is tabled tomorrow — surely this is a sign of all good things to come in the New Year beginning with stable governance and mature deliberations. For the first time in a decade, according to prime minister Narendra Modi, an important Budget Session is set to begin without the usual disruptions, especially those that were “mischievously” fueled by foreign influence. PM Modi’s remark about “no videshi chingaari,” will resonate with the common man who has seen way too many Parliament sessions halted.

PM’s comments may have been a sharp dig at the Opposition, but it also carries a positive undertone. A stable, disruption-free Parliament signals a maturing democracy — one that is focused on governance rather than chaos. After all, there’s no spark without a flame, and with no external ‘chingaari’ this time, is India finally setting its own course towards Viksit Bharat? If this is seen constructively, then yes, it does seem like the people are better aligned towards the goal of nation building.

This was not the case in 2024, nor in 2023, not even in 2022, not in 2015, 2016… there has not been a single Parliament session in the last about 10 years which has not been halted due to external issues or disturbances. Here’s a list of all the unnecessary sparks that have unfairly ignited the Indian Parliament, without having led to any constructive end.

Before we proceed towards the list of such sparks, some of which are still fresh in our memory, there’s a reason why Parliamentary disruptions are seen as a democracy’s greatest setback. It turns any forum for debate into a battleground of chaos. And in the end it is not just politics that suffers, but it has an indirect impact on the people as well. What people like you and me want is a functional democracy that thrives on healthy discussions and not disorder. Frequent disruptions erode public trust while delaying crucial reforms.

But the trend has been the opposite. A PRS data reveals that the number of Parliament sittings have halved since the 1950s and 1960s and for the last eight consecutive sessions, both houses of Parliament have been adjourned ahead of schedule. If you discount the reforms that have been stalled and concentrate on the monies wasted, this ‘chingaari’ is totally unneeded. Parliament adjournments incur a cost of Rs 2.5 lakh per minute, which raises concerns about the utilisation of taxpayers’ hard-earned money.

Is the spark without a result, not akin to means with no ends?

Starting from 2024, tracing back the disruptions to 2014:

The Interim Budget Session 2024: Desperation of INDI alliance

The alliance MPs staged a walkout in Lok Sabha over the arrest of former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren by the Enforcement Directorate earlier this week. It was not new because staging walk-outs had become a phenomena with the Opposition, led by Congress. The Parliament during the session saw everything — sloganeering, protests, walk-outs, demonstrations within the premises, unparliamentary language abound — there is no end to the woes.

Budget session 2024; Kursi bachao or Opposition’s foul cry?

INDIA bloc MPs, including Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Congress........

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