Modi urges Rajya Sabha to clear bills passed by Lok Sabha

Prime Minister Narendra Modi Wednesday called on the Rajya Sabha to work in tandem with the Lok Sabha in passing important bills.  Modi was replying to the motion of thanks in Parliament Tuesday.

"The Upper House is a chamber of ideas. It is important that both houses should cooperate," Modi was quoted as saying in the Rajya Sabha by Rajya Sabha TV. "The nation is waiting for us to pass many bills. Let us pass bills earlier passed in the Lok Sabha as soon as possible and give an impetus to India's progress." 

Modi had, during his address in Parliament last week, hit out at the Opposition for stalling important pieces of legislation such as the the Goods and Services Tax (GST) Bill. Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had Tuesday urged Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi to ensure passage of important bills. 

The Bharatiya Janata Party, which currently has 48 seats in the 245-member Rajya Sabha, is seeking to increase its presence in the Upper House of Parliament through the upcoming state elections to ensure its bills there are not stalled by the Opposition. 

Assembly elections will be held in Assam, West Bengal, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the Union Territory of Puducherry next month. 

During his speech Wednesday, Modi called upon the Congress to give 30 percent of its tickets to the uneducated for the state elections.