Right ahead of the Parliament's monsoon session which begins from tomorrow, Centre convened an all-party meeting today to address various issues. Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla chaired the meeting in Delhi. From violence in Manipur, Uniform Civil Code to women's reservation in legislatures, parties pitched for various matters to be discussed during the parliament session.
The all-party meeting on the eve of the session beginning is known to be a customary event where various political parties put across their issues at the meeting attended by senior government ministers.
Previously, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has also participated in many such meetings. Rajya Sabha Chairperson Jagdeep Dhankhar also called for a similar all-party meeting on Tuesday which has been postponed due to the non-availability of leaders of many parties.
It has been reported that Defence Minister Rajnath Singh held a meeting with some of his Cabinet colleagues, including Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi and Leader of the House in Rajya Sabha Piyush Goyal in connection with the all-party meeting called by the government. As per media reports, separate meetings of BJP leaders followed by those from the BJP-led NDA will also be held on Wednesday in a bid to decide on the strategy for the parliament session.
Discussions at the all-party meet
Asserting that it takes two hands to clap, the Congress said if the government wants Parliament to function, it should give space to opposition's issues, and demanded a discussion on Manipur during Parliament's Monsoon Session. "Two months have passed but the prime minister (Narendra Modi) is silent. I would like to request that he has been silent for over two months but he should at least make a statement in Parliament and allow us to hold a debate," Congress's leader in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury made the remarks after participating in the meeting.
Meanwhile, Odisha's ruling Biju Janata Dal, Andhra Pradesh's YSRCP and Telangana's Bharat Rashtra Samithi pitched for parliamentary nod for women reservation in legislatures. BJD also pitched for special category status for the state.
Amidst the clamour for Uniform Civil Code, IUML leader ET Muhammed Basheer said that the government should desist from such a code. Samajwadi Party leader ST Hasan also reiterated the party's opposition to the code. "We want a discussion on UCC (Uniform Civil Code). Our party, including our president Akhilesh Yadav, will always oppose a bill which aims to create a division in the society," he said.
Bills to be taken up
The government is likely to take up 31 bills during the parliament's monsoon session, including the controversial Forest (Conservation) Amendment Bill 2023, Digital Personal Data Protection Bill, 2023 and the Government of NCT of Delhi (Amendment) Bill, 2023. The list found no mention of the Uniform Civil Code.
"We will strongly oppose this (Delhi) Ordinance. We thank all those (opposition parties) who have supported us over this," AAP leader Sanjay Singh said. Several opposition parties, including the Congress, have voiced their support for the Aam Aadmi Party as it prepares to oppose the bill.
BJP-Opposition feud
The Parliament session is expected to be stormy as both the BJP and Opposition parties are sharpening attacks on each other ahead of a host of assembly polls this year and the Lok Sabha election 2024. The Congress and other opposition parties are seeking to corner the government over the Manipur crisis besides the issues of price rise and alleged misuse of probe agencies.
