PM Modi talks of cooperative federalism, but coercive federalism witnessed in country: Tharoor on Delhi ordinance bill

livemint.com:

Narendra Modi talks about cooperative federalism, the country was witnessing "coercive federalism". Participating in the debate over the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amendment) Bill, 2023 in Lok Sabha, the Congress MP said the proposed bill represents a "grave chapter in the history of the Indian republic, seeking to ratify an ordinance that in many ways is an assault on our democratic heritage and the spirit of federalism," reported PTI.

The senior Congress leader said when a motion of no-confidence was pending against the government. a bill with such a substantive policy change should not have been brought in the first place.

"The Bhagavad Gita of parliamentary practice and procedure -- MN Kaul and SL Shakdher (book) -- explicitly states that when the leave of the House to the moving of a motion of no-confidence is granted, no substantive motion on policy matters is to be brought before the House by the government till the motion of no-confidence is disposed of," PTI reported quoting Tharoor as saying. "In 27 motions of no-confidence brought since independence to this House, no bills were debated and passed (during the period of no-confidence motion) before this government did so with two bills in 2018," the PTI report added.

"Therefore, such an improper introduction of a substantive policy change while the no-confidence motion is pending is against the democratic morality," the Congress MP said. "What we have repeatedly seen under this government is a brazen effort being made to curtail the autonomy of our states.