Lok Sabha sat for a marathon 15:41 hours to clear the controversial Waqf Bill and adopt a Statutory Resolution on the President’s Rule in Manipur. This was perhaps one of the longest sittings of the lower house since the first session in 1952.
The Bill on Waqf seeking to amend the existing Waqf laws was passed with a 288-232 vote after a 12-hour-long debate. The voting process for the Bill lasted 1:49 hours. Manipur debate took about 41 minutes.
The Lower House also passed amendments made by the Rajya Sabha to the Banking Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024 just before taking it up. The Question Hour was also conducted in Lok Sabha.
While the Waqf Bill took nearly 14 hours, the Mussalman Wakf (Repeal) Bill was passed in minutes. The debate and voting on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, which started a little after noon Wednesday, ended only at 1:56 AM on Thursday. The ruling NDA members strongly defended the legislation as beneficial for minorities, while the opposition described it as “anti-Muslim” during the debate.
60 MPs participated in the Waqf Bill Debate
Sixty MPs participated in the debate. Union Minister of Minority Affairs Kiren Rijiju, who placed the bill on Wednesday replied to discussions.
All four amendments seeking changes in Waqf (Amendment) Bill, including excluding tribal land and protected monuments from the ambit of Waqf, moved by government were accepted by a voice vote. However, all amendments moved by the Opposition were negated with one going to a vote.
The Lok Sabha then took up the proclamation of President’s Rule in Manipur at 2 AM. Eight Opposition MPs spoke for about 30 minutes, followed by a 10-minute reply by Home Minister Amit Shah. None of the NDA members spoke on the motion, though the Opposition objected to taking up the matter at late hours.
Longest-ever sitting?
The sitting on Wednesday through wee hours on Thursday was perhaps one of the longest sittings of Lok Sabha. There have been five sittings longer than this one before.
The longest-ever sitting of Lok Sabha was in 1997, according to data by PRS Legislative Research. The lower house sat for about 20.08 hours, during the motion to consider the state of our democracy and democratic institutions.
In 1993, Lok Sabha sat for 18.35 hours during general discussion on the Railways Budget for 1993-94. Similarly in 1998, Lok Sabha sat for 18.04 hours, during a discussion on Railways Budget for 1998-99.
Gujarat Riots
In 2002, Lok Sabha sat for 17.25 hours to discuss under Rule 184 – a motion over the failure of the administration to ensure the security of minorities in the country, including in Gujarat.
The ruling NDA members strongly defended the legislation as beneficial for minorities, while the opposition described it as ‘anti-Muslim’.
In 1981, Lok Sabha sat for about 16.68 hours during a discussion on consideration and passing of the Essential Services Maintenance Bill, 1981.
The Lok Sabha sat for 13.19 hours, during the discussion under Rule 193 on the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021.
