PM holds strategy meeting for Parliament session

Amid opposition plans to move an adjournment motion in the Lok Sabha on the Nandigram issue on Monday, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today held a high-level meeting to chalk out a strategy for the Parliament session.

The hour-long meeting was attended by External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Defence Minister A K Antony and Home Minister Shivraj Patil.

Sources said that besides Nandigram, the meeting discussed other issues likely to come up during the brief winter session that began today.

The meeting took place in the backdrop of BJP's plans to move an adjournment motion in the Lok Sabha on the situation in Nandigram  where NDA has accused the UPA government of  "Dhritarashtra-like inaction" on the issue.

Left parties, especially CPI(M) ruling West Bengal, which are under attack from all sides, opposed moves to take up the issue in Parliament asserting that it was a state subject.

Prime Minister, who himself is monitoring the developments in Nandigram, has been in constant touch with Union Home Minister who is reviewing the situation on a day-to-day basis.

Updated at 1300 hrs: Both houses of Parliament were adjourned on the first day of the winter session today in memory of two sitting and six former members who died recently.

Sitting MPs who died during the inter-session period are Vijay Kumar Khandelwal of BJP who represented the Betul constituency in Lok Sabha and former BJP president Jana Krishnamurthy, a Rajya Sabha member from Gujarat.

The current Parliament session will conclude on December 7.

Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee paid obituary references to Khandelwal, Manjay Lal, Yashwant Borole, Lala Ram Ken and L M Singhvi.

Rajya sabha Chairman Hamid Ansari led the House is paying tributes to Krishnamurthy, J P Mathur, S R Bommai and Singhvi. (BS Reporter)