New Delhi: The BJP-led NDA government at the Center has convened an all-party meeting on Wednesday to discuss issues for the monsoon session of Parliament which is set to begin on Thursday (July 20). According to PTI, the meeting aims to deliberate on a range of issues related to the session. Notably, the all-party meeting is a customary get-together on the eve of a session's start as various parties put across their issues at the meeting attended by senior government ministers. A similar all-party meeting was called on Tuesday by Rajya Sabha Chairperson Jagdeep Dhankhar but was later deferred due to the non-availability of leaders of many parties as many opposition parties were holding a huddle in Bengaluru, the ruling National Democratic Alliance met in the national capital.
The monsoon session is expected to be stormy with the BJP and opposition parties sharpening attacks on each other as they gear up for a host of assembly polls this year and the Lok Sabha elections next year. Manipur crisis and ordinance over control of services in Delhi are likely to be the key issues of discussion apart from inflation and alleged misuse of investigative agencies
The Congress party, along with other opposition parties, is seeking to corner the government by highlighting the Manipur crisis, as well as addressing concerns regarding price inflation and alleged misuse of investigative agencies.
Meanwhile, on Tuesday, the united Opposition chose INDIA as the name for the alliance ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. India is an acronym that stands for:
I - Indian
N - National
D - Developmental
I - Inclusive
A - Alliance
According to VCK chief Thol Thirumavalavan, the name was proposed by Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee at the united Opposition's meeting of 26 "like-minded" parties in Bengaluru, with former Congress president Sonia Gandhi in attendance.
Several parties, including the MDMK, KDMK, VCK, RSP, Forward Bloc, IUML, Kerala Congress (Joseph), and Kerala Congress (Mani), are among those joining the second opposition meeting. The 24 Opposition parties collectively hold around 150 Lok Sabha seats.
With the name of the opposition alliance decided the partners are now likely to sign a joint declaration to form a sub-committee to draft a common minimum programme for the functioning of the alliance for the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
Speaking on Opposition parties attacking each other in different states, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge said that the differences between the Opposition parties are not too big. "We are aware that at the state level, there are differences between some of us. These differences are not ideological. These differences are not so big that we cannot put them behind us for the sake of the common man and the middle class, for youth, for the poor, the Dalit, the adivasis, and the minorities, whose rights are being crushed silently behind the scenes."
The first meeting of the united Opposition was held on June 23. The major difference between the first and second meetings is the presence of Sonia Gandhi. Her presence is being seen as a move to get the Congress, the largest Opposition party in Lok Sabha, back in the lead on the united Opposition platform. The Congress has, however, said that it is not interested in power or the post of the Prime Minister.