Govt hints at all-party meet to end Parliament deadlock

Aditi Tandon

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, July 30

After seven wasted sittings of the monsoon session of Parliament which commenced on July 21, the government, for the first time today, hinted at the possibility of convening an all-party meeting to break the ongoing deadlock.

None of the two Houses has transacted any business in the ongoing session on account of Congress’ condition that three tainted BJP leaders (Foreign Minister Sushma Swaraj, Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje and Madhya Pradesh CM Shivraj Singh Chouhan) must resign for Parliament to function. Indications of an all-party meet came from Home Minister Rajnath Singh who, along with Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Rajeev Pratap Rudy, today attended the meeting the Lok Sabha Speaker had called to discuss continuing indiscipline in the House and the show of placards.

With the Congress not budging from its stand in the meet and instead justifying its parliamentary protests as a “continuation of the BJP’s tradition”, the government hinted it would talk to the Opposition to find a meeting ground.

These indications came after Congress leader in Lok Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge too expressed a willingness to “discuss matters”. He said today the government had made no attempt to talk to him or other leaders.

“We are ready to cooperate but the government has not spoken to anyone of us. Till the time the government resolves the matter, parliamentary disruption will continue. The BJP showed us in 2010 and 2012 that disruption is part and parcel of a democracy. We are following in their footsteps. The ball is now in their court. They are not taking any initiative to understand our issues,” Kharge said after the Speaker’s meeting, adding that the Congress stand of “first resignations then discussions” was alive.

But Kharge’s statements today reflected a dilution of the Congress’ stand considering its Rajya Sabha leaders had boycotted the meeting Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Leader of RS, had called last week to break the deadlock.

In the Rajya Sabha

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