Centre to meet party floor leaders today ahead of Parl's winter session

On the eve of Parliament's Winter Session, the government will meet floor leaders of political parties on Sunday to ensure the smooth functioning of the House against the backdrop of the BJP and its rival alliance's surprise victories in Maharashtra and Jharkhand, respectively.

The meeting has been convened by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, leaders of Congress, Trinamool, DMK, Shiv Sena, BJD and others are expected to join the deliberations.

The Winter Session of Parliament, beginning Monday, is scheduled to last till December 20. The government has listed 16 bills, including the Waqf Amendment Bill, for consideration, while the opposition is keen to raise the issues of the ongoing ethnic violence in Manipur and the indictment of businessman Gautam Adani by a US court on allegations of bribery.

 

Several opposition leaders have said they will raise the issue of the indictment of Adani in Parliament with Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi calling for a joint parliamentary committee probe into the allegations.

The meeting is also likely to discuss an event planned to be held on November 26 marking the 75th anniversary of the adoption of the Constitution in the Central Hall of Samvidhan Sadan (the old Parliament building).

The bills pending in the Lok Sabha include the Waqf (Amendment) Bill which has been listed for consideration and passage after the joint committee of the two Houses submits its report to the Lok Sabha.

The panel is mandated to submit its report on the last day of the first week of the Winter Session.

Opposition members on the panel are demanding an extension in the timeline to submit its report. They have alleged that committee chair Jagdambika Pal, a BJP MP, is bulldozing the committee meetings and has sought the intervention of Speaker Om Birla.

The presentation, discussion and voting on the First Batch of Supplementary Demands for Grants for the year 2024-25 has also been listed.

The other bill listed by the government for introduction, consideration and passage is the Punjab Courts (Amendment) Bill to enhance the pecuniary (defined as the monetary value of a case) appellate jurisdiction of Delhi district courts from the existing Rs 3 lakh to Rs 20 lakh.

It also includes the Merchant Shipping Bill that seeks to ensure compliance with India's obligation under maritime treaties to which New Delhi is a party. Besides, the Coastal Shipping Bill and the Indian Ports Bill have also been listed for introduction and eventual passage.

As many as eight bills, including the Waqf (Amendment) Bill and the Mussalman Wakf (Repeal) Bill, are pending in Lok Sabha. According to a Lok Sabha bulletin, two bills are pending with the Rajya Sabha.

The Rajya Sabha bulletin said an additional bill The Bharatiya Vayuyan Vidheyak, passed by the Lok Sabha is pending with the Upper House.

A set of proposed bills to implement simultaneous elections in the country are not part of the list yet, though some reports suggested that the government is likely to bring the proposed legislation in the coming session.