As government backtracks on broadcasting and waqf bills, Opposition buoyed – but cautious

The Union government on Monday withdrew a contentious draft of the Broadcasting Services (Regulation) Bill after weeks of criticism from media organisations, digital content creators and internet policy experts that the proposed law was aimed at clamping down on voices that criticised the ruling party.

This came just four days after a bill proposing amendments to the Waqf Act, 1995, was sent to a joint parliamentary committee for greater scrutiny – the first time this has happened in five years. The bill aimed to change the laws governing Islamic charitable endowments, or waqf. Opposition parties attacked the bill as being “anti-Muslim”. Even allies of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party such as the Telugu Desam Party, Janata Dal (United) and Lok Janshakti Party pushed for wider consultation on the bill.

These two instances signal a departure from how the BJP government appeared to bulldoze bills through Parliament in the first two terms of Narendra Modi when the party enjoyed a majority on its own in the Lok Sabha. Bills were discussed for shorter durations and the number of bills sent to standing committees and parliamentary panels declined from the terms of the previous Congress-led government.

Opposition leaders believe that with the BJP falling short of a majority in the last elections and dependant on the...

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