Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge on Friday urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to convene an all-party meeting to discuss the Centre’s delimitation proposals, warning against attempting to push through another Constitutional Amendment Bill without wider consultation.
In a letter to Modi, Kharge referred to the defeat of the Constitutional Amendment Bill on delimitation in the Lok Sabha on April 17, which failed to secure the required two-thirds majority.
Kharge said he had previously written to the Prime Minister on April 11, July 16 and August 27, seeking an all-party meeting on the issue. He alleged that the government had not convened such a meeting before making the Bills public late on April 14 and calling a special session of Parliament two days later.
He called for political parties to be given sufficient time to deliberate on the new proposals with one another and other stakeholders before they are finalised for consideration in Parliament.
The letter also flagged that 64 days had passed since the Monsoon Session was adjourned sine die on August 13, while both Houses of Parliament were yet to be prorogued. Kharge described the situation as “unprecedented”.