Following the announcement of the demonetization of 500 and 1000-rupee notes by the Prime Minister of India, I had predicted the distress this would cause for the common man and the nature of political divide it was destined to create in the near future. While any evidence of money recovered shall be noted only in the months to follow, the discussion now must focus on how matters have come to a head with a deadlock in the functioning of the winter session of parliament.The political class now stands divided in two distinct groups, with the government and the opposition averse to the idea of allowing a discussion unless held on specific conditions. In this process, the legislature and its functions have been held hostage by the warring egos of these two groups. Despite the fact that some parties including BJD and JD(U) have attempted to establish dialogue on the floor of the house, a large section of the opposition has expressly, and at times in a volatile fashion, criticized the poor implementation of the demonetization process while at the same time disallowing parliament to function and with no furnishing to the government of constructive solutions to end this plight.It is around the rule under which the discussion on demonetization must be introduced that the Lok Sabha stands divided. The argument over which rule to introduce the discussion under, while seemingly pertinent for sticklers for parliamentary procedures, does not seem entirely fitting in the context of a stalled debate over the suffering of the people and the inherent mismanagement in implementing this policy across the nation. I have submitted for discussion on the matter a notice under Rule 193 of the Lok Sabha Rule of Procedure, calling for a short-duration discussion on the matter. While the Treasury benches of the House are inclined to hold a discussion under Rule 193, which grants only a debate, the opposition continues to push for a discussion under an adjournment motion followed by a vote in the House. This is indicative of a censure of the government's decision through the votes cast against it. It comes as no surprise that the government is vehemently opposed to the introduction of the motion with a vote on the floor of the House. This tug-of-war of sorts between the two camps has led to a stalemate of over ten days now, with little to no discussion on a matter of crucial importance to the people of India.The irony remains that since the House is getting adjourned on a daily basis, the government would have been better off holding a discussion via an adjournment motion in the beginning itself. Given that the numbers in the Lok Sabha dictate that any vote would go in the favour of the government, why the opposition continues to push for an adjournment is beyond logic. The clash of these egos has prevented a meaningful debate in the House, while the country continues to suffer. It appears as if the government is waiting for the situation to better by tweaking the policy every day while the opposition is betting on the government to fail, both at the cost of immense tragedy caused to the citizens who have voted them to office.There is a looming absurdity in the unwillingness of elected representatives to discuss demonetization with an unprecedented stubbornness. While discussions on some major bills remain ignored so far in this session, the political reluctance depicts a disinterest in reconciliation, even in the face of a pressing need to discuss the GST Bill. This shall ultimately draw a compromise between the two distinct sides as noticed in the parliament currently.Principally, the Lok Sabha is required to address the oversight of the Legislature's duties to hold the Executive responsible as well. The deadlock arising from the complete breakdown of communications in the parliament currently is interfering with the duty of the legislature to hold the government answerable for its actions, to question the legality and efficiency of the current demonetization move and to suggest methods that will ease the transition process in a constructive parley of ideas. There is therefore an immense need for introspection on both sides of the political spectrum and a speedy realization of what the duties of elected representatives of people's interests are.

(Kalikesh Narayan Singh Deo is a second-time sitting Member of Parliament from Bolangir in Odisha and a prominent leader of the Biju Janata Dal.)