PM likely to respond, convey his govt’s robust response, stand
Prez recommends bill to rehabilitate, resettle KPs be taken up in RS
Jammu, Jul 23: The much-anticipated discussion on the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor will be taken up in the Parliament early next week, with both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha expected to hold a 16-hour debate each.
If there are no disruptions, the Lok Sabha will begin the discussion on July 28 and the Rajya Sabha a day later.
While a final call has not been yet taken on whether Prime Minister Narendra Modi will respond on the discussion, the government has not ruled out the possibility, citing that the proposal of holding discussion next week has been made on the ground that PM would be back in country from his four-day foreign tour which began on Wednesday.
Adding heft to this is the fact that the debate on the two issues will not only have a strong national traction but will also be paid attention to by the global community, as asserted by a senior BJP leader.
“The prime minister may choose the occasion to convey his government’s robust response to the terror attack and stand on a host of issues,” the BJP leader said.
The main Opposition party Congress, on the other hand, claimed that they have been assured by the government that PM Modi would be present during the discussion.
While the government had agreed to the 16-hour discussion in the Lok Sabha at the Business Advisory Committee meeting on July 21, a similar decision was taken at the Rajya Sabha’s BAC meeting on Wednesday, amid the opposition’s insistence that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should speak on the issue.
The Lok Sabha will begin the discussion on July 28 and the Rajya Sabha a day later if there are no disruptions, sources said.
Opposition protests over a host of issues, especially the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in poll-bound Bihar, have washed out the proceedings in both the Houses, except for a few transactions, since the Monsoon session began on Monday.
It has also attacked the government for not prioritising a discussion on Operation Sindoor and the April 22 Pahalgam attack.
The government, the sources said, has made no commitment on the opposition’s demand for the prime minister’s response but has cited its proposal for a parliamentary discussion next week on the ground that Modi will be back by then from his four-day foreign visit, for which he left on Wednesday.
A senior BJP leader said the debate on the conflict with Pakistan, which ensued after India retaliated under Operation Sindoor following the killing of 26 civilians in the Pahalgam terror attack, will not only have a strong national traction but will also be paid attention to by the global community.
“The prime minister may choose the occasion to convey his government’s robust response to the terror attack and stand on a host of issues,” the BJP leader said, adding that a final call has not been taken yet on whether Modi will speak or not.
Congress’ deputy leader in the Rajya Sabha Pramod Tiwari, who attended the BAC meeting, claimed, “We have demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should be present during the discussion, and we have been assured of that by the government.”
This was the first BAC meeting after Jagdeep Dhankhar stepped down as vice president on Monday, when he chaired two back-to-back committee meetings to finalise the House’s agenda. The vice president is ex officio chairman of the Rajya Sabha.
Dhankhar called off the second meeting and rescheduled it for Tuesday as Leader of the House in Rajya Sabha J P Nadda and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju did not attend due to what they later said was their engagement in other official business. Dhankhar resigned a few hours later to “prioritise health care”.
The BAC includes representatives of various parties and is chaired by the respective presiding officers of the two Houses.
The opposition has also demanded debate on a host of other topics, including the Bihar SIR, but the government has given no assurance on it so far.
Meanwhile, President Droupadi Murmu has recommended that a private member’s bill calling for rehabilitation and resettlement of Kashmiri Pandits for consideration in the Rajya Sabha.
The Kashmiri Pandits (Recourse, Restitution, Rehabilitation and Resettlement) Bill, 2022, was introduced in the Rajya Sabha by Congress member Vivek Tankha on February 2, 2024, but had to get the President’s recommendation as it involves financial implications.
“For the first time in the Parliament, a private member bill titled “Kashmiri Pandits (Recourse, Restitution, Rehabilitation and Resettlement) Bill, 2022″ has been recommended by the Hon’ble President for consideration in the house, subject to time constraint,” Tankha said in a post on X.
“If discussed and approved, this can be a turning point in the fight for justice for Kashmiri Pandits. Its a big achievement as very few bills with financial implications, get recommend by the Hon’ble President under clause (3) of Article 117 of the Constitution,” Tankha said in a following post.
He also tagged a letter from the Rajya Sabha secretariat that stated: “I am directed to state that the Hon’ble President of India has been pleased to recommend, under clause (3) of Article 117 of the Constitution, consideration of the Kashmiri Pandits (Recourse, Restitution, Rehabilitation and Resettlement) Bill, 2022, which was introduced by you on February 2, 2024, in the Rajya Sabha.”
