The Lok Sabha was adjourned sine die on Friday, bringing down the curtain on a 19-day Winter Session marked by the passage of several high-impact Bills, sharp political confrontations, and unresolved demands from the opposition for wider scrutiny of electoral processes.
The brief session, which began on 1 December, concluded after 15 sittings, with Speaker Om Birla noting unusually high productivity even as protests and sloganeering punctuated proceedings.
How did the Winter Session conclude?
As soon as the House assembled on Friday, Speaker Om Birla delivered a short valedictory address, stating that the Lok Sabha’s productivity during the session stood at 111 per cent, with members often sitting late into the night to deliberate on key legislation.
He then adjourned the House sine die—for an indefinite period—formally ending the Winter Session. During his address, some members were heard raising “Mahatma Gandhi ki jai” slogans. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was present in the House at the time of adjournment.
Which Bills dominated the Winter Session?
The session saw the passage of several politically and economically significant Bills. Among the most contentious was the Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) Bill, also known as the VB-G RAM G Bill, which replaces the two-decade-old MNREGA framework and promises 125 days of guaranteed employment in rural India. The Bill was passed amid opposition protests, including the tearing of papers in the House.
Another major legislative development was the passage of the Sustainable Harnessing and Advancement of Nuclear Energy for Transforming India (SHANTI) Bill, which opens India’s tightly regulated civil nuclear sector to private participation.
The Lok Sabha also cleared legislation to raise foreign direct investment (FDI) in the insurance sector to 100 per cent, up from the existing 74 per cent. The Sabka Bima Sabki Raksha (Amendment of Insurance Laws) Bill, 2025 was subsequently passed by the Rajya Sabha through a voice vote.
What other legislative business was completed?
In addition to flagship economic reforms, Parliament passed a Bill repealing 65 Amendment Acts and six principal laws deemed obsolete. A proposed law to create a new higher education regulator—the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhisthan Bill, 2025—was referred to a joint committee of both Houses for further examination.
The Bill seeks to establish an overarching higher education commission alongside three separate councils responsible for regulation, accreditation, and academic standards across universities and institutions.
Another significant proposal—the Securities Markets Code Bill—was introduced and referred to a department-related standing committee for detailed scrutiny.
Politically Charges Debates
Two debates dominated the political discourse during the session: one commemorating 150 years of “Vande Matram”, and another on election reforms. The latter became a flashpoint after the opposition demanded a discussion on the Election Commission’s ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in 12 states and Union Territories.
The government maintained that the functioning of the Election Commission could not be debated in Parliament, agreeing instead to a broader discussion on election reforms. Opposition parties, however, centred their criticism on the SIR exercise, the new law governing appointments of the chief election commissioner and election commissioners, and alleged “vote chori” carried out by the poll authority in collusion with the ruling BJP.
A scheduled debate on air pollution, to be initiated by Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi, did not take place.
What does the session signal going forward?
While the Narendra Modi-led government pushed through an ambitious legislative agenda spanning employment, nuclear energy, insurance and regulatory reform, the Winter Session also underscored persistent political fault lines—particularly over electoral integrity and institutional independence.
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