Opposition wants Parliament to discuss SIR, Delhi blast, air pollution. What minister said on winter session eve
“It will be discussed at the Business Advisory Committee meetings this evening,” Rijiju said on the eve of the winter session of Parliament
After the Opposition at an all-party meeting demanded that the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter rolls be discussed in the upcoming winter session of Parliament, on Sunday, parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju posted the matter for later in the day.
The Congress also demanded a discussion on national security in the wake of the recent blast near Delhi's Red Fort.
“It will be discussed at the Business Advisory Committee meetings this evening,” Rijiju said on the demand for a discussion on the much-debated SIR, as per news agency PTI. “All parties have given good suggestions and we have taken them positively,” the senior BJP leader further said.
The Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha's Business Advisory Committees — with members from both ruling and opposition parties, led respectively by the LS Speaker and the Vice President of India — recommend the time to be allocated for discussions in the Houses.
Also read | ‘No time to rest’: Overworked Bengal village poll staffer juggles life and SIR
Earlier, Congress deputy leader in the Lok Sabha Gaurav Gogoi alleged that the ruling BJP-led NDA wants to “finish off democracy, derail Parliament and bury parliamentary traditions”.
He said that at the all-party meeting the Congress demanded a discussion on national security, air pollution, ensuring purity of voter list, farmers' issues and foreign policy.
"It seems the government, under the leadership of the Prime Minister (Narendra Modi) and the home minister (Amit Shah), is looking to finish off India's democracy and parliamentary traditions," he told reporters after the meeting.
Gogoi said the Congress also demanded a discussion on the issue of air pollution.
“We also raised the issue of foreign policy. India is formulating its foreign policy on the basis of other countries. Someone does not like us buying oil from Russia. Another country is investing in its defence and we are not ready,” he said.
Gogoi said the opposition is united, and does not want the “temple of democracy” to be used only to sing “paeans of just one person”.
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh, who also attended the meeting, said it was “a mere formality”. "This session of 15 days will be the shortest in Parliamentary history," he said.
Rijiju had said ahead of the all-party meeting, "Since it's the winter session, we hope everyone works with a cool head and avoids heated debates. There will be a debate in Parliament, and I hope there will be no disruptions. If we work with a cool head, it'll be beneficial for the country, and the Parliament session will run smoothly."
