Opposition Demands Debate on JNU, Rohith, in All-Party Meeting

Ahead of Budget 2016 session which will start from Tuesday, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan has called for all party meeting on Monday.

On February 16, PM Modi has also held a meeting with the leaders of the various political parties.

At an all party meeting of the Rajya Sabha leaders on Saturday, the Modi government agreed to the opposition demand to discuss the JNU controversy in the Budget Session of the Parliament. In last Monsoon and Winter session the government had seen continuous disruption in both the houses with Congress and several other parties blocked key economic reforms including the long pending GST Bill.

However, when questioned on this, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi told Mail Today – “Our primary concern in the coming Parliament session will be to get legislations passed, but we have also conveyed to the Opposition that we are ready for a debate on other issues if they want”.

Issues like JNU row, Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula’s suicide and Pathankot terror strike set to dominate the proceedings despite efforts to broker peace between the opposition and the government. The Budget Session is scheduled to begin with the Presidential Address from February 23.

There was some understanding between the BJP and the Congress on taking up some non-contentious legislation for consideration and passing after discussions on issues raised by the Opposition.

An official press note issued on behalf of Chairman Ansari claimed “a general sense of agreement that the House should legislate and deliberate all issues as all leaders present shared the same feeling”.

Ansari said,”time has come to assure the public that parliamentary democracy does work and is sensitive to the needs of the people”.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, who spoke first in the meeting, sought the Opposition cooperation for the same, to which West Bengal’s ruling Trinamool Congress agreed. The Congress will then decide their strategy for the session.