Congress wants Dy Speaker post, raises NEET row

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Union Minister Kiren Rijiju and Union Minister Jagat Prakash Nadda during the all-party meeting . Pic/PTI

The Congress on Sunday sought the Lok Sabha Deputy Speaker's position for the opposition in the all-party meeting convened by the government ahead of Parliament session, and raised the issue of paper leaks, including of the prestigious NEET, sources said.

Congress leader Gaurav Gogoi said at the meeting that the opposition should be allowed to raise issues in Parliament after Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju sought cooperation from every party for the smooth running of the two Houses, the sources said.

Briefing reporters after the meeting, Rijiju said 55 leaders from 44 parties attended the all-party meeting where useful discussion took place.

He said running Parliament smoothly was the collective responsibility of the government and Opposition and that the government was open to discussing any issue in Parliament by following laid down rules.

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, who chaired the meeting, referred to the opposition's continuous protests during Prime Minister Narendra Modi's speech during the last session, and said such incidents should not happen in Parliament.

Cong questions TDP silence on special status

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said that in the all-party meeting, the JD(U) and the YSRCP demanded special category status for Bihar and Andhra Pradesh respectively but TDP kept quiet. Ramesh, said on X, "The JD(U) leader demanded special category status of Bihar. YSRCP leader demanded special category status for Andhra Pradesh. Strangely, the TDP leader kept quiet on the matter."

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