New Delhi. The Congress on Sunday insisted in an all-party meeting that issues like the NEET case, the Uttar Pradesh government’s order to canteens and the internal security situation in Jammu and Manipur should be discussed during the budget session of Parliament.
Congress General Secretary (Communication in-charge) Jairam Ramesh said that in the all-party meeting of the leaders of the House chaired by Defense Minister Rajnath Singh, Congress Deputy Leader in Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi raised several issues on behalf of the party which should be raised in the Parliament session starting from Monday.
Ramesh said Gogoi called for a discussion on governance issues related to “NEET, NET matter, UPSC controversy, deterioration in railway security and Agniveer”. He said the party also stressed that the internal security situation in Jammu and Manipur should be discussed during the session.
According to Ramesh, Gogoi also said in the meeting that challenges on the border with China and environmental concerns arising from floods and natural disasters, deforestation and pollution should be discussed during the session. The Congress also raised issues related to center-state relations and the economy and said that these should be debated.
In a post on ‘X’, Ramesh, who attended the meeting, said that referring to the controversial directive of the Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand governments to display the names of the owners of dhabas located on the Kanwar Yatra route, the party also raised the issue of “deliberate attempts to polarise states like UP by passing unconstitutional orders”.
Earlier, as soon as the meeting started, Ramesh posted on ‘X’ that in the all-party meeting, the Janata Dal (United) leader demanded special category status for Bihar. Ramesh said in the post, ‘Yuvajana Sramika Raithu Congress Party (YSRCP) leader demanded special state status for Andhra Pradesh. It is strange that the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leaders remained silent on this matter.’
In another post, the Congress leader said, “How the political atmosphere has changed! In the all-party meeting of the leaders of the House, the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) leader reminded Defence Minister and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president JP Nadda that the BJP’s manifesto for the 2014 assembly elections in Odisha had promised special category status to the state.”
Ramesh also wrote on ‘X’ that it is a universal demand that the ‘Central Hall’ should once again be opened for MPs so that they can meet each other and communication between parties can improve. He said, “After the inauguration of the new Parliament building, the use of the historic Central Hall has stopped.”
In another post on ‘X’, Ramesh said, “In the all-party meeting of the leaders of the House chaired by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, there was a universal demand for the formation of 24 department-related standing committees and giving them due importance. There is also a universal demand for resuming consultative committees where MPs can interact with the concerned ministers.”
Tags: BJP, Congress, Jairam Ramesh, Parliament session
FIRST PUBLISHED : July 21, 2024, 23:03 IST