– Abdul Bari Masoud
As the first week of the Monsoon Session of Parliament stumbled through adjournments and uproar, the real drama played out not only within its halls but in symbolic protests and deafening silences. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s conspicuous absence, Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar’s dramatic resignation, and an unsettling voter roll revision in Bihar revealed deeper undercurrents and malice threatening country’s democratic polity.
These events – resignations, suppression, and revisionism – aren’t mere coincidences. They mark a calculated orchestration of institutional decay, strategic silences, and electoral manipulation designed for political gain.
‘Democracy in a Dustbin’
On July 25, an unusual display of Opposition unity took shape on Parliament grounds. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, DMK’s Kanimozhi, TMC’s Derek O’Brien, RJD’s Manoj Jha and other leaders staged a protest march carrying torn posters that read: SIR – Loktantra par Vaar. The message was direct: the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of Bihar’s electoral rolls was, they alleged, an orchestrated attempt to disenfranchise marginalised communities ahead of the Assembly elections.
Outside the Makar Dwar of the new Parliament premises, MPs one by one shredded their protest placards and discarded them into a large garbage bin. “This is where the government has thrown democracy,” Kharge told reporters. “We’re simply returning the favour.”
Rahul Gandhi, in his most combative avatar since taking over as Leader of Opposition, didn’t mince words. “We studied how elections were hijacked in Karnataka and Maharashtra,” he said.
It said a 90-year-old first-time voter was also registered, among other bogus voters before the general elections in Bengaluru.
“In Maharashtra, they added nearly one crore voters. In Bihar, they’re deleting names – of Dalits, Muslims, Adivasis. This isn’t voter verification; it’s a surgical strike on the electorate.”
Gandhi accused the Election Commission of complicity. “They refused to give us access to digital rolls. They changed rules mid-process to block video documentation. What else is this but institutional sabotage?”
The last such revision in Bihar took place in 2003, under vastly different circumstances. Then, it was a bureaucratic exercise to verify voter eligibility. Today, the Opposition argues, it’s a tool of political engineering – one aimed at manufacturing electoral majorities by erasing the margins.
The ‘Vanishing’ Prime Minister
As the political mercury rose inside the House, the Prime Minister stayed missing in action. Apart from a brief address to the media on the session’s opening day without taking any questions, Narendra Modi made no appearance in either House.
His silence, particularly during a session packed with controversies and crises, struck many as calculated avoidance. “Why won’t the PM speak?” Rahul Gandhi asked. “Is he afraid of answering on Bihar, on Operation Sindoor, on judicial corruption?”
Modi’s absence stood out most glaringly during the tabling of a historic motion: over 200 MPs called for the impeachment of Justice Yashwant Varma, implicated in a high-profile cash found at his residence scandal. For a regime that claims “zero tolerance” on corruption, the Prime Minister’s silence spoke volumes.
Opposition leaders view this no-show not just as neglect, but as a strategy – to delegitimise Parliament as a space for dialogue, dissent, and accountability.
The Shock Resignation of Jagdeep Dhankhar
If Modi’s silence was a void, Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar’s resignation was a thunderclap.
On July 24, Dhankhar abruptly resigned from his post, citing “health reasons.” But Parliament insiders suggest a ‘deeper story’. According to multiple sources, Dhankhar had indicated willingness to admit the Opposition-backed impeachment motion against Justice Varma – an act perceived as defiance by the Modi government.
“Dhankhar wasn’t in the script,” a senior TMC MP said. “He believed in parliamentary autonomy. That clashed with the PMO’s command-and-control model.”
His resignation reportedly followed pressure from the top, with the BJP interpreting his move as insubordination. Since stepping down, Dhankhar has become persona non grata in the pro-government media, which is planting negative stories to discredit him.
The Rajya Sabha, now adrift, was left in the hands of Deputy Chairman Harivansh, known for siding with the Treasury benches. In rapid succession, he dismissed nearly 30 adjournment motions on pressing issues – from the Pahalgam terror attack to the Bihar SIR controversy.
A Parliament in Paralysis
The session had started on a hopeful note, with oath-taking by new MPs like BJP’s Kanad Purkayastha and AGP’s Birendra Baishya. But optimism quickly gave way to chaos.
On July 22 and 23, both Houses were repeatedly adjourned as Opposition MPs demanded urgent debates on national security and electoral integrity. By July 24, the Bihar protest reached its crescendo, paralysing Parliament entirely.
“Showmanship, no substance,” quipped Rahul Gandhi, taking a jab at Modi’s media optics.
Turf War in the NDA
Dhankhar’s departure has triggered turmoil within the NDA. The ruling alliance is scrambling to find a successor who is both loyal to Modi and able to command the increasingly contentious Rajya Sabha. Sources say the race for Vice-President has deepened an old rivalry: the Modi-Shah duo versus the RSS leadership.
This internal power play has also stalled the decision on a new BJP president. J.P. Nadda remains on an extended term, but the leadership vacuum persists – another sign of institutional drift within the ruling alliance.
Bihar: The Test Ground for a Bigger Strategy
Observers argue these developments are not isolated. Rather, they are part of a larger political design aimed at centralising power, weakening institutional autonomy, and manipulating electoral structures. Bihar is the laboratory for this experiment.
“The SIR exercise is not voter verification; it’s voter suppression,” said RJD’s Manoj Jha. “It’s a dry run for democratic exclusion.”
Dhankhar’s resignation reveals cracks even within the ruling establishment. “He tried to act constitutionally – and got punished for it,” remarked a CPI(M) leader. “That tells you all you need to know about this government’s respect for institutions.”
What Lies Ahead
This Monsoon Session may be remembered not for what it legislated, but for what it exposed: a democracy under siege, a Parliament rendered powerless, and a ruling regime that prefers governing by diktat rather than debate.
From the torn SIR posters dumped in symbolic protest, to the eerie silence left by a missing PM and an ousted Vice-President, the writing on the wall is clear. Power is being centralised. Debate is being diluted. Electoral processes are being tweaked to secure predetermined outcomes.
The INDIA bloc’s protests may not immediately reverse the Bihar voter purge or reinstate Dhankhar, but they have drawn national attention to a creeping authoritarianism.
As Rahul Gandhi bluntly put it: “Elections are being stolen. But this time, people are watching. And we will fight for every single vote.”
A Test of Priorities
Amid the noise, there is one item on which Parliament will focus next week: a 16-hour debate on Operation Sindoor – a major counter-terrorism mission – and the recent Pahalgam terror attack.
While the government will likely use the opportunity to showcase its national security credentials, the Opposition has made its stance clear: national security cannot become a smokescreen to mask institutional decay and democratic subversion.
This Monsoon Session has become a mirror reflecting an uncomfortable truth: the threats to Indian democracy are no longer external – they are internal, systemic, and deliberate.
