"850 MP .. aapka haal kya hoga mujhe pata nahi", Tharoor tells Speaker Birla :::::: Delimitation is like Political Demonetisation - Shashi Tharoor during Debate in Lok Sabha on Women Bill and issue of Delimitation

 Congress MP Shashi Tharoor says the Govt is showing "the same haste" on Delimitation as it had shown while enforcing Demonetisation in 2016. 

"We all know what damage it did to the country," he maintained during debate in Lok Sabha on the twin matters related to Women Bill and the Delimitation exercise.  

"The Delimitation will be political demonetisation.... don't do it sir," he said.  

Tharoor said there are elements in the Bill as the recommendations of the Delimitation Commission cannot be challenged in a court of law. 

"As it is not codified; it could be easily disregarded or altered by a simple majority in Parliament." 

He said - "Expanding the Lok Sabha to 850 member House would create a largest legislature in the world ...." and added that as presiding officer the Speakerr would find it difficult to run the House. 

"This will be unworkable".  

Moreover, he said the government has been reducing "systematically" the Parliament sitting.  

The Congress MP said the first and the second Lok Sabha met for 125 days a year; but the 16th and 17th Lok Sabha saw that figure drop below 60 days.  

"What will be your job Sir (He told the Speaker)... 850 members will require doubling the time for Question Hour, Zero Hour..." 

At one point, Speaker Om Birla said in a lighter vein: "If this happens in my tenure, I will give opportunities to all". 

"Last night (April 16) also we allowed extensive sitting past mid night till 1.25 am," the Speaker said. 

Tharoor did not give up easily and continued saying: "aap ke baarey mein bhi chinta hae sir (We have worries about the chair too)". 

"As it is with 543 members, we often do not get time often... 850 MP .. aapka haal kya hoga mujhe pata nahi". 

Another area of concern, Tharoor said while the size of the Lok Sabha is being expanded; there is no corresponding proposal to increase the strength of the Rajya Sabha. 

"This will alter the relative balance between two Houses," the former Union Minister from Kerala said adding, "in the event of a joint sitting...the large Lok Sabha will dominate the voting process".