New Delhi, Feb. 22: The government and the Opposition appear to be moving towards a confrontation on the issue of rising prices of essential commodities. While the government on Monday night rejected the Opposition’s demand for a discussion on this issue

under an adjournment motion in the Lok Sabha, the main Opposition BJP said it would not allow the House to function if the adjournment motion was not accepted.

In that situation the role of UPA constituents like the Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamul Congress and the DMK, and supporting parties like the Samajwadi Party, the BSP and the RJD, becomes important on the floor of Parliament because they are obliquely backing the demand by expressing concern on this issue.

Parliamentary affairs minister Pawan Kumar Bansal made it clear that the government is not shying away from a division (voting) on this issue in the Lower House as it is in a comfortable position and has a majority. The government, he said, was ready to have a structured debate on this issue in the two Houses of Parliament on Tuesday. It can be discussed in the short duration discussion in both Houses, he explained, adding that the government could dispense with Question Hour in the Rajya

Sabha if the Opposition wants to debate it on Tuesday.

The Opposition can move amendments to a motion of thanks on the President’s address to the joint sitting of Parliament or can give a notice for cut motions on the Budget proposals, he viewed.

According to Mr Bansal, the price rise issue cannot be discussed under an adjournment motion because this is not an "urgent" matter and the Union government cannot be held solely responsible. Even Opposition leaders have been pointing out how this issue has been figuring in Parliament and, besides, the state governments too have the power to check prices, he said.

"These discussions do not lie under (the purview of an) adjournment motion," Mr Bansal told reporters. Accusing the Opposition of not being fair on the issue, he said the government was not afraid to face any motion. "We are very confident. We are going to last five years. There is no fear of anything. We are confident that our allies are with us. There is no problem," he said emphatically when asked whether UPA partners like the DMK and Trinamul Congress, and outside supporters like the SP and RJD, would make the government’s path slippery.

Mr Bansal said the government’s objection was on matters of principle as the Opposition was not playing as per the rules governing the conduct of the House. Besides, he said, under an adjournment motion a discussion can take place only at 4 pm and must be completed within two-and-a-half hours, while a special discussion under Rule 193 could go up to seven hours.

His comments came soon after Opposition leaders, including Leader of the Opposition Sushma Swaraj, met Speaker Meira Kumar and declared they would bring an adjournment motion on Tuesday and demand the suspension of Question Hour.

BJP deputy leader in the Lok Sabha Gopinath Munde said his party has already given notice for an adjournment motion and the government "should not make it an ego issue". He said a meeting of the business advisory committee of the Lower House was held in which an attempt was made to convince the government to suspend Question Hour on Tuesday and hold a discussion on price rise. "The government did not agree to set aside Question Hour and accept the adjournment motion. Since we have already given a notice for an adjournment motion, we will not allow the House to function if it is not accepted," Mr Munde said.

Meanwhile, besides Ms Swaraj, the other Opposition leaders who met the Speaker included Gurudas Dasgupta (CPI), Basudeb Acharia (CPI-M), Lalu Prasad Yadav (RJD) and Mulayam Singh Yadav (SP).

UPA allies Trinamul Congress and DMK have also sought a full-fledged debate on the issue.

But in the Rajya Sabha both the government and the Opposition have reached an understanding to take up a discussion on price rise. The Opposition’s strategy is to broaden the scope of this issue by targeting Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. They may attack Union agriculture minister Sharad Pawar, but their main target is the PM and the Congress party after realising that it could become a key issue in the forthcoming Assembly polls.

But the Congress plans to counter this by asking what the BJP, which rules and shares power in nine states, has done to check the rise in prices of essential commodities in key states like Karnataka, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Bihar and Punjab.

Supporting parties like the SP, BSP and the RJD cannot afford to be seen with the BJP on the floor. Moreover, the SP and BSP cannot come together, even on the issue of rising prices, because of political compulsions in Uttar Pradesh, sources said.

Venkatesh Kesari