As the Monsoon Session of Parliament reached its last leg with a number of crucial Bills being passed without any substantive debates, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday reportedly sought details of notable BJP absentees in the House.
The specific point of reference was the passage of Tribunals Reforms (Rationalisation and Condition of Service) Ordinance, 2021 in the Rajya Sabha on Monday against which the Opposition had moved a statutory resolution. Although the Opposition resolution was eventually defeated and the Bill passed with a voice vote, the treasury benches had to hurriedly pool in the votes. The statutory resolution had demanded that the Tribunals Reforms Bill be sent to the select Committee of the House.
Speaking at the BJP parliamentary party meeting on Tuesday, Modi apparently asked Parliamentary Affairs Minister Prahlad Joshi to submit the details of those who were not present in the House when the voting was held, sources said.
Focus on Olympic winners
The parliamentary party led by the Prime Minister also reportedly gave a standing ovation to the Olympic medal winners.
“Modi asked the BJP MPs to promote various kinds of sports besides cricket in their respective constituencies from the grass root level,” the sources said. “He told MPs to build sports infrastructure and make arrangements for training for budding talents,” they said.
During the meeting, Sports Minister Anurag Thakur gave a presentation on India’s performance at the Tokyo Olympics. Thereafter, Law Minister Kiren Rijiju, who held the Sports portfolio till July, also spoke about the preparations made for the Games.
External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar also spoke on the UNSC meeting. Modi became the first Indian Prime Minister to preside over a meeting of the UNSC on Monday.