Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, July 12: The Centre has called an all-party meeting next Sunday, a day before the Monsoon Session of Parliament begins on July 20 to discuss the government’s legislative programme as the opposition INDIA bloc is planning to corner the government on some of the burning issues, including the donation fund embezzlement in the Ayodhya Ram Temple and the paper leak of the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test – Under Graduate (NEET – UG) leading to strain on the students to appear for re-test for medical admissions.
According to officials, the meeting will begin at 11 am and follows the usual practice of holding consultations with political parties before every Parliament session. The government is expected to brief leaders on the Bills it plans to introduce, while opposition parties are likely to highlight issues they want debated in both Houses.
As announced by the parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju, the monsoon session of the Parliament will run from July 20 to August 13 and would focus on meaningful debates, discussions and decisions on matters of national importance.
The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MP Sudhakar Singh said the INDIA bloc would seek to corner the government on Ram Temple scam, the NEET paper leak and other important issues even as it would be guarding itself against attempts by the BJP to engineer defections within its ranks to secure a two-thirds majority in the two houses of Parliament. He alleged that the BJP was pursuing a political strategy to weaken Opposition parties in an attempt to secure the numbers required to push through its legislative agenda.
“The BJP wants to achieve a two-thirds majority by breaking Opposition parties across the country. The INDIA bloc will oppose that unitedly. We will raise every burning issue -from the Ram Mandir donation theft and the paper leak to unemployment, corruption and the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls,” Mr Singh said.
Official sources said the government was expected to introduce several important Bills during the session, making it one of the busiest legislative periods this year. At the same time, the proceedings are likely to witness sharp exchanges as the opposition prepares to corner the government on a number of issues.
Political developments in several opposition parties are also expected to influence the session. The Trinamool Congress has faced internal unrest following its defeat in the Assembly elections. Twenty of its MPs have reportedly merged with the National Citizens Party of India and have sought separate seating arrangements in the Lok Sabha. In addition, three Trinamool MPs resigned from the Rajya Sabha before joining the BJP.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) has also witnessed another split, with six of its Lok Sabha MPs joining the Shiv Sena led by Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and joined the NDA camp. Earlier, seven AAP members of the Rajya Sabha had also joined the BJP.
Among the issues expected to be raised by the opposition are the alleged NEET-UG paper leak and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh’s remarks regarding casualties during Operation Sindoor. The Congress has already submitted a breach of privilege notice against the Defence Minister over his comments.
Meanwhile, the Joint Parliamentary Committee examining the proposed 130th Constitution Amendment Bill is expected to finalise and adopt its report on July 17 before presenting it in Parliament. The proposed legislation has triggered political debate, particularly over a provision that would require the Prime Minister, Chief Ministers, and Union or State ministers to vacate office automatically if they remain in judicial custody for 30 consecutive days in cases involving serious offences.
In the opposition camp, Mr Singh when asked about the recent defections by opposition MPs and speculation of more to come, said the concern extended across the INDIA bloc. “Earlier, defections happened within the framework of the law. Today, it appears even those safeguards are being ignored. Every Opposition party is concerned because the ruling party is trying to weaken its rivals despite lacking the numbers on its own,” he alleged.
Mr Singh alleged that the BJP’s efforts to weaken the opposition were part of a broader attempt to undermine the Constitution. “The 2024 Lok Sabha election was fought on the issue of saving the Constitution. People used to ask how the Constitution could be weakened. Today, we are seeing it happen through the laws being framed and the actions being taken,” he alleged.
Referring to the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, Mr Singh alleged that the exercise was an attack on citizens’ voting rights. “The right to vote is a democratic right. If genuine voters are deleted from the electoral rolls, governments can be changed through the voter list rather than through the ballot. Once you capture the voter list, you capture the election,” he alleged.
He claimed that if such practices continued, elections in India would resemble those in “China, Russia and North Korea, where almost all votes go to the ruling party, leaving only the illusion of democracy.” Mr Singh said the Opposition would also strongly resist legislations such as ‘One Nation, One Election’, delimitation and other measures that, according to him, weaken the Constitution and democratic rights.
“If the government brings legislations such as One Nation, One Election, delimitation or any other law that weakens the Constitution or curtails democratic rights, the INDIA bloc will oppose them both inside Parliament and on the streets,” he said.
Calling the alleged NEET paper leak a “national crisis,” Mr Singh expressed support for the ongoing protest at Jantar Mantar led by climate activist Sonam Wangchuk and the Cockroach Janta Party. “I stand 100% with the students and their movement. This is no longer just about an examination. It is a crisis of trust in India’s education system. Students have suffered irreparable losses, families have exhausted their savings, and many young people have slipped into depression. It has become a national crisis,” he said.
“We have already organised protests in Bihar. When the Parliament convenes, we will stand with the students in Delhi as well. We will continue this movement until there is accountability and concrete action.” Singh also accused the BJP of using administrative measures to target opposition leaders, citing the eviction of former Bihar chief minister Rabri Devi from her official residence in Patna and the FIR registered against him in connection with the Piprakothi land dispute in East Champaran.
“If the infrastructure required to run an opposition party is systematically taken away — whether by evicting leaders from official residences, withdrawing security or filing criminal cases — the intention is clearly to intimidate the opposition and silence those raising questions about the ruling party,” he alleged.
He also alleged that farmers’ lands in Bihar were being acquired in the name of development and industrial projects, and warned that “lakhs of acres” of agricultural land could be lost if the practice continued.