Inauguration of the new Parliament House The event scheduled for May 28 could have been an occasion for national unity, but, unfortunately, politics is taking center stage. Opposition parties have announced that they will boycott the event., pointing out that the President, the head of state, and not the Prime Minister, who is the head of government, should have inaugurated the building. The opposition’s argument has merit, although boycotting is an extreme reaction. The government and the opposition have contributed to turning this too into a cesspool of bitterness, which has already made meaningful functioning of Parliament very difficult. In a joint statement, the opposition said that “this indecent act dishonours the high office of the President and violates the letter and spirit of the Constitution”, and specifically noted that India’s first woman tribal president is now . The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has retaliated to this allegation. Recalling that former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi inaugurated the Parliament Annexe building on October 24, 1975, and Rajiv Gandhi laid the foundation stone of the Parliament Library on August 15, 1987. The opening of the annexe or library, however, is not. Equivalent to the opening of a majestic building of representative government.
Turning a milestone in the nation’s journey into a partisan event certainly has bad optics, but what is more worrying is the huge damage it is doing to democracy. The irony cannot be harsh. Although a new, bright physical space for discussion is opening up, dialogue between the government and the opposition is either absent or hostile. Democracy is not about buildings and statues, but about discussions and finding common ground. The increase in the power of the executive at the cost of parliamentary power is a matter of concern in many democracies and sadly India is also witnessing this. The new building is a part of the reconstruction of Central Vista, which is the seat of the Government of India. The BJP government did nothing special to take the opposition into confidence. Not only the President but also the leaders of the opposition should have had an active role in the inauguration ceremony. Parliament is there to hold the executive accountable to the people; It is not a place of executive dominance. The unfortunate trend in recent years is the steady erosion of this core function of Parliament. The inauguration of the new building could have been an opportunity for course correction.