Flag hoisting in new Parliament building; all-party meet on special session eve
Vice President of India and Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankar will hoist the national flag at the new Parliament building today, a day before the special session of the Parliament.
The event will be attended by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, Union Minister of Parliamentary Affairs Pralhad Joshi, Rajya Sabha Deputy Chairman Harivansh, Ministers of State of Parliamentary Affairs Arjun Ram Meghawal and V. Muraleedharan, and leaders of political parties in both Houses, among others.
Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge, who is in Hyderabad for a two-day meeting of the newly constituted Congress Working Committee, won’t be present during the flag hoisting ceremony at the new Parliament building. The Congress president on Saturday wrote to Rajya Sabha Secretary General, Pramod Chandra Mody, expressing disappointment over the late invitation to the function.
“Dear P C Mody ji, I am writing this letter with a sense of disappointment that I have received your invite for flag hoisting function tomorrow at New Parliament building only on September 15 quite late in the evening.”
“Since the programmes had been fixed much in advance. I am presently in Hyderabad to hold the meetings. As I will return to Delhi late night on September 17, it will not be feasible for me to attend the function scheduled for tomorrow morning,” Kharge said in his letter.
All-party meeting
A meeting of the floor leaders of all political parties is scheduled for 4.30pm today, ahead of the five-day special session of the Parliament from September 18 to 22.
“Ahead of the parliament session from the 18th of this month, an all-party floor leaders meeting has been convened on the 17th at 4.30 PM,” Minister Pralhad Joshi said in a social media post earlier this week.
“The invitation for the same has been sent to concerned leaders through email. Letter to follow,” he added.
Agenda for special session of Parliament
After days of speculation over the agenda of the special session called by the government, a parliamentary bulletin said the two houses will discuss Parliament’s 75-year journey on the first day. The tentative list of business for the Parliament Session includes the bill on the appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner and other election commissioners to be taken up for consideration and passage.
The other listed business for Lok Sabha includes ‘The Advocates (Amendment) Bill, 2023’ and ‘The Press and Registration of Periodicals Bill, 2023’, already passed by Rajya Sabha on 3 August 2023.
Besides, ‘The Post Office Bill, 2023’ has also been listed in the Lok Sabha business.