NEW DELHI: As both Houses of Parliament are set to take up a debate on the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor early next week, the INDIA bloc ally Trinamool Congress (TMC) has taken a divergent stand by insisting that a debate on the ongoing Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in Bihar be taken up first. The government has agreed to discuss Operation Sindoor for 16 hours in the Lok Sabha on Monday. It will come up for discussion in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.
According to TMC sources, the party raised the demand in the first meeting of the Business Advisory Committee (BAC) of the Rajya Sabha on Wednesday. However, the government did not pay heed to the demand, said a leader. Incidentally, it was the first BAC meeting which was held after Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar’s resignation. The leader further said that the party may even abstain from the debate on Operation Sindoor and Pahalgam if the government ignores their demand.
In the meeting, the government was non-committal on the Opposition’s demand for a debate on the ongoing Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls in Bihar. Although the other INDIA bloc members had earlier wanted the discussion on Operation Sindoor to be held immediately, the government said that debate would be possible only after Prime Minister Modi’s return from a two-nation visit on July 26.
While the other INDIA bloc partners have agreed with the government on the debate on Operation Sindoor, the TMC feels that SIR must be given priority, as it will have devastating effects on voting rights and citizenship of citizens. West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee has been demanding roll back of the revision.