Parliament Monsoon Session: Elections to the post of Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman will be held on Thursday. (File) Parliament Monsoon Session: Elections to the post of Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman will be held on Thursday. (File)

The Rajya Sabha on Monday cleared the Constitution (123rd Amendment) Bill, 2017 also referred to as the OBC bill as part of the ongoing Monsoon session.

With the Congress undoing its stance taken in the Upper House during the last Monsoon Session, the Bill to grant constitutional status to the National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) was passed unanimously by Lok Sabha last week.

The passage of the Constitution (123rd Amendment) Bill, 2017, making NCBC a panel with full powers to safeguard rights and interests of the Other Backward Classes (OBCs), is likely to give a fillip to the BJP’s attempts to posture itself as a party that stands for backward communities.

Meanwhile, accusing the BJP-led Centre of unleashing “super emergency”, TMC leaders protested outside Parliament to voice their objections to the government’s “interference” in media houses and the implementation of NRC in Assam. “Prominent media houses are either being bought over or threatened. Resignations of two top executives, editor-in-chief and popular anchor of ABP News Network, indicate increasing government interference. Shows are being blacked out and defamation cases have been filed against news organisations,” PTI quoted TMC MP Derek O’Brien as saying.