Special Session’s Agenda Unknown, Centre Calls All Party Meet Day Before

The government will hold an all-party meeting Monday evening – hours before the start of a five-day special session of Parliament that was called for by Union Minister Pralhad Joshi earlier this month.

Mr Joshi posted on X (formerly Twitter), writing: “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. The invitation for the same has been sent to concerned leaders through email. Letter to follow.” The post also included a Kannada translation of the statement.

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. The invitation for the same has been sent to concerned leaders through email.
Letter to follow

ಇದೇ ಸೆಪ್ಟೆಂಬರ್ 18 ರಿಂದ ಆರಂಭವಾಗಲಿರುವ ವಿಶೇಷ…

— Pralhad Joshi (@JoshiPralhad) September 13, 2023

Mr Joshi is a Lok Sabha MP from Karnataka’s Dharwad constituency.

Monday’s all-party meeting may discuss the agenda for next week’s session, a lack of clarity over which has led to furious speculation, including buzz the government will move a resolution to change the country’s official name from India to Bharat.

READ | Government Calls Parliament “Special Session”, Agenda Not Declared

Last week formal invitations to G20 leaders from President Droupadi Murmu’s office described her as the “President of Bharat”, triggering an outcry from the opposition. The government pointed to the relevant line in the Constitution, which says “India, that is, Bharat, shall be a Union of States…”

READ | On India-Bharat Name Change Row, Rahul Gandhi’s Jab At Government

There is also talk the special session has been called to formally move the Parliament from the old building to the new; sources had said this may take place on September 19.

The government’s special session announcement has been widely criticised by opposition leaders. Several hit out for choosing a date that clashes with “India’s most important festival” – Ganesh Chaturthi will be celebrated on Tuesday.

“This special session called during India’s most important festival of Ganesh Chaturthi… goes against Hindu sentiments!” Shiv Sena UBT’s Priyanka Chaturvedi said, while the Nationalist Congress Party’s Supriya Sule demanded it be rescheduled. 

Just read about the upcoming Special Parliament Session (13th Session of 17th Lok Sabha & 261st Session of Rajya Sabha) happening from Sep 18-22.

Whilst we all look forward towards meaningful discussions and dialogue, the dates coincide with the Ganpati Festival, a major…

— Supriya Sule (@supriya_sule) August 31, 2023

Ex-Congress Chief Sonia Gandhi, meanwhile, wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to “point out this special session has been convened without any consultation with other political parties”. “None of us have any idea of its agenda… all we have been communicated is that all five days have been allocated for ‘government business’,” she told the Prime Minister.

Government sources had told NDTV the session’s agenda may include discussions on India as a ‘developed nation’. Other topics could include Chandrayaan-3, the Moon mission, and the widely praised G20 Summit that was held in Delhi last week.