All-party meeting held ahead of Winter Session of Parliament

NEW DELHI: A meeting of floor leaders of political parties in both houses of Parliament was held on Saturday ahead of the Winter Session of Parliament, which begins on December 4. Union Minister Pralhad Joshi chaired the meeting that began at 11 am at the Parliament Library building.

The winter session of the Parliament is scheduled to continue till December 22. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi, Union Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal were seen arriving for the meeting on Saturday.

Among the opposition leaders, Congress MP Jairam Ramesh, Pramod Tiwari, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) MP Mahua Maji were present in the meeting. The meeting is being held a day before results of assembly elections of four states (Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Telangana) are announced on December 3. Results of Mizoram polls will be announced on December 4.

The outcome of the polls is expected to have resonance in the Session. Several exit polls have predicted different fortunes for the parties that have contested in those states. The all-party meeting is usually convened a day before the session begins, this time it has been preponed by a day due to the counting of votes for the assembly polls.

Speaking to ANI, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) MP Mahua Maji said, "In our state, we are in alliance with Congress. We are hopeful that, in many states, our government will be formed. Because people can see how the work is being done by the central government. The process of privatisation is going on, pensions have been stopped. There are many reasons why people don't want the BJP government everywhere. You have seen the results in the exit polls. We hope to form the government even in those places, the exit polls are predicting otherwise."

Congress MP Pramod Tiwari said that exit polls are not reliable and they are relying on feedback from their workers in the states.

"Exit polls are not reliable. Some are showing a different result while some are showing otherwise. We've feedback from workers, from states. In the four states (Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Telangana), we are going to form the government with full majority. In Mizoram, we will form a government in alliance," Tiwari said speaking to ANI.

Three important bills which seek to replace the IPC, CrPC and the Evidence Act may be taken up for consideration during the session.

The Ethics Committee, which probed the 'cash-for-query' allegations against Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra, is slated to lay its report in Lok Sabha on the first day of the winter session of Parliament on December 4.

The listed agenda of Lok Sabha for December 4 mentions that Vinod Kumar Sonkar and Aparjita Sarangi to lay the "on the Table the First Report (Hindi and English versions) of the Committee on Ethics".