New Delhi: The Central government is preparing to convene a three-day special session of Parliament to pass the long-pending Delimitation and Women’s Reservation Bills. According to sources, this special session could be convened between August 16 and 18. The government intends to pass these two important bills as quickly as possible, but given the opposition’s tough stance, the path appears difficult.
Why did Kiren Rijiju meet Rahul Gandhi?
While on one hand the opposition has not given its green signal to the delimitation bill, on the other hand the government has started contacting the opposition parties to build a consensus.
Amid the ongoing parliamentary deadlock, Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju met with Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Wednesday. The meeting, which was held at Rahul Gandhi’s office in Parliament House, lasted about 50 minutes and was also attended by senior Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.
According to sources, the stand of Congress and other opposition parties is clear that they will take a final decision only after their concerns regarding this proposed bill are resolved.
What happened in the Parliament?
This important meeting takes place in the wake of unrest that is still continuing in the monsoon session. The issues for which the opposition wants answers from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah in Parliament include:
- Police action against student demonstrators on July 22 at the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) protest.
- Theft of money and valuables given at the Ram Temple at Ayodhya.
However, the Delimitation Bill that was introduced along with the Women’s Reservation Bill in connection with the 131st Constitutional Amendment Bill could not garner a two-thirds special majority in the Lok Sabha during the special three-day session conducted in April. At the time, the BJP-led NDA did not have the numbers needed in either House of Parliament.
