Parliament Winter Session Day 3: 1st peaceful Question Hour as SIR stalemate ends, Oppn protests labour-codes

On Wednesday, the Lok Sabha saw its first disruption-free Question Hour of the ongoing Winter Session — a rare moment of parliamentary normalcy after two days of repeated adjournments over the demand for a debate on the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

The calm came after a late-night meeting on Tuesday, chaired by Speaker Om Birla, in which floor leaders agreed to a schedule: a discussion on the 150th anniversary of the national song Vande Mataram on Monday, followed by a full debate on electoral reforms — including SIR — on Tuesday next week.

As the House reconvened, members first paid tribute to former MPs who recently passed away. That was followed by the Question Hour — the first since the disruption began — where members raised queries to ministers freely, without sloganeering or walkouts.

Opposition strategy, protests, and pressure tactics

At the same time, opposition parties have not let go of pressure entirely. On Wednesday, leaders of the INDIA bloc — including representatives of major parties such as Indian National Congress, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Samajwadi Party (SP), Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), Communist Party of India (Marxist) (CPI-M), Communist Party of India (CPI), Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), … among others — convened in Parliament to coordinate their agenda for the session.

Notably, one of the major parties in the opposition fold, Trinamool Congress (TMC), chose not to attend the meeting, just as it had boycotted the first such meeting on December 1.

In a show of dissent, dozens of opposition MPs from the INDIA bloc staged a protest today outside the Makar Dwar of Parliament, voicing their strong opposition to the newly implemented four labour codes. They accused the government of pushing “anti-worker” legislation and demanded immediate withdrawal of the codes.

Opposition leaders reiterated during the meeting that their unity and sustained pressure forced the government to concede to the SIR-debate demand, and demanded that Parliament now function properly — holding the government responsible for ensuring smooth business.

Government business moves forward; Sanchar Saathi & Excise Bill in focus

With the House functioning smoothly today, the government moved ahead with its agenda. Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman introduced the Central Excise (Amendment) Bill, 2025, aimed at replacing the existing cess on products such as tobacco and pan-masala with central excise duty — part of its broader push to rationalize the sin-goods levy structure.

Snooping will never happen with Sanchar Saathi app: Scindia 

Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia on Wednesday said snooping is neither possible nor will it happen with the Sanchar Saathi safety app, amid a row over his ministry's order asking smartphone makers to preload the state-run cybersecurity app on all new devices.

In Lok Sabha, Scindia said the app is for the protection of the people. Sanchar Saathi app se "na snooping sambhav hai, na snooping hoga", the minister said during Question Hour.

In the context of the discussions about the app, the minister also said the government wants to give power in the hands of the people to help them protect themselves.

The ministry's order dated November 28, mandates all mobile phone manufacturers to pre-install the Sanchar Saathi app in all handsets to be sold in India, as well as in existing devices through software update.

It mandates mobile phone companies to ensure that the pre-installed Sanchar Saathi application is readily visible and accessible to the end users at the time of first use or device setup, and that its functionalities are not disabled or restricted. On Tuesday, Scindia said users are free to delete the app if they don't want to use it.

But critics remain unconvinced. Leaders of the CPI-M and other parties pointed out that pre-installation on all new devices — even if deletion is technically allowed later — undermines the concept of voluntary consent and opens the door to potential misuse and mass surveillance.

Protest against new labour codes:

Several Opposition MPs, including Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and former party chiefs Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, protested on Wednesday against the new labour codes in Parliament House complex and demanded their scrapping.

MPs of the Congress, DMK, TMC, Left parties, among others, participated in the protest in front of the Makar Dwar of Parliament.

Carrying posters and placards against the new labour codes, the opposition MPs raised slogans demanding their rollback.

What’s next — SIR debate, reform bills, and fresh flashpoints

With the House now operating under an uneasy truce, attention is turning to what happens next week. The scheduled debate on the “Vande Mataram” anniversary, and especially the promised electoral reform and SIR discussion, will be crucial to test whether peace holds in Parliament or whether the impasse resurfaces.

At the same time, the government is expected to push ahead with fiscal, regulatory, and security-related legislation. Given protests over labour codes outside Parliament today, the session is likely to witness a mix of lawmaking and political theatre, making it a high-stakes phase as the year closes.