Congress leader Sonia Gandhi writes to PM Modi, lists issues for special Parliament session
Congress Parliamentary Party chief Sonia Gandhi has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, demanding discussions on nine issues in the special Parl session.
Congress Parliamentary Party chief Sonia Gandhi wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday to demand discussions on nine issues, including fresh revelations on the Adani Group, price rise and caste census, in the upcoming special session, prompting a sharp response from parliamentary affairs minister Pralhad Joshi, who accused her of politicising Parliament.
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The exchange came amid furious speculation about the legislative agenda for the five-day session next week — after controversies around simultaneous state and assembly polls, and using the name Bharat instead of India in some official government communication — and summed up the mood in the government and Opposition camps.
In her rare letter to the PM, Gandhi also asked for discussion on the government’s commitment to the farmer bodies on minimum support prices, and reiterated the Congress’s demand for a joint parliamentary committee to investigate the transactions of the Adani Group. Gandhi demanded another discussion on Manipur underlining the “continued agony faced by people of Manipur and breakdown of constitutional machinery and social harmony”.
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“You have convened a special five-day session of the Parliament beginning 18 September 2023. I must point out that this special session has been convened without any consultation with other political parties. None of us have any idea of its agenda,” she said in her letter.
Hours later, Joshi responded, saying that the special session was not in contravention of rules and regulations. “It is unfortunate that you are trying to politicise and create an unwarranted controversy over Parliament, the temple of our democracy,” he said in a letter addressed to the former Congress chief.
The minister said that before the start of a session, there is a meeting with the leaders of all parties, where the agenda and issues to be taken up are discussed. “Our government is always ready to have discussions on any issue... the issues that have been raised by you have already been raised during the monsoon session when the discussion on the no confidence motion was taken up and responded to by the government,” Joshi’s letter said.
In the monsoon session, the Congress and other opposition parties had moved a no-confidence motion against the Modi government to force the PM to speak on Manipur. “The two meetings and the letter are part of our attempt to set a narrative for the session,” said an Opposition leader, a day after floor leaders of the INDIA group and the Congress parliamentary party held their respective meetings to set a common agenda for the Opposition.
The Congress also announced it will not insist on discussions under any particular rule — something it had demanded when the Hindenburg report on the Adani Group came out ahead of the budget session — but added that a session entirely for government business was not acceptable.
The letter mentioned the “current economic situation with focus on increasing price rise of essential commodities, growing unemployment, rise in inequalities and distress of micro small and medium enterprises” as the top agenda.
The farmers’ issue – against the backdrop of the government’s assurances to farm bodies during the 2021 protests against three now-scrapped farm laws, particularly on the issue of minimum support prices – was listed as the second point.
The third demand were about the fresh allegations against the Adani Group published in two UK-based newspapers last week. “It is very important to constitute a JPC on the revelations …We have been making this demand for the last six months, but we are repeating this demand again and Sonia ji has conveyed this to the PM,” said party general secretary Jairam Ramesh.
Gandhi also asked for debate on communal tensions in states such as Haryana, the situation at the Line of Actual Control in Ladakh and Arunachal Pradesh, the “continued occupation of Indian territory by China” and the “urgent need” for a caste census.
“Not only has the caste census not been done, but the census which was to be held in 2021, which is done every 10 years, has also not been done yet. And due to the absence of that census, there are about 14 crore people in our country who could not become the beneficiaries of the food security act, so it is necessary to have a census, and especially a caste census,” Ramesh said.
In her letter, the former Congress president also asked for debates on “the damages being inflicted on Centre-state relations” and “impact of natural disasters caused by extreme floods in some states and drought in others.”
In his reply, Joshi dismissed the demands in Gandhi’s letter.
“Maybe you are not familiar with traditions and procedure...before calling a session, and discussion with political parties is not required nor is the agenda discussed,” he said.
He said that the agenda will be circulated at the appropriate time as per established practice. “I would also like to point out again that in our parliamentary functioning, irrespective of which party is in government, to date the agenda has never been circulated in advance at the time of convening the Parliament,” he wrote.
“I have full confidence that the dignity of Parliament will be maintained and this platform will not be used for political disputes. Additionally, I look forward to your full cooperation in running the upcoming session smoothly resulting in meaningful results in the national interest,” he added.
Bharat Rashtra Samithi leader K Kavitha also opposed Gandhi’s letter. “Saddened to see that the urgency for discussing women’s reservation bill was completely ignored in Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson and MP Sonia Gandhi ji’s letter to the Prime Minister. Mrs. Gandhi Ji, the nation awaits your powerful advocacy for gender equality.” she said.