Ahead of Parliament session, senior Cong leaders meet at Sonia's residence
New Delhi (PTI): Top Congress leaders on Sunday evening met at the residence of Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi and held discussions on the party's strategy for the Winter session of Parliament starting Monday.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi were present in the meeting.
At the meeting, the leaders decided to raise the demand for a discussion on the electoral reforms which would include Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.
Congress deputy leader in Rajya Sabha Pramod Tiwari said opposition leaders would meet at the office of Kharge, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha, at 10 am on Monday to chalk out their joint strategy in Parliament.
He said an all-party meeting was held and then a meeting of the Business Advisory Committee of the Rajya Sabha was also held.
After considering the views of the entire Opposition, the parliamentary affairs minister has indicated that a discussion on electoral reforms can be held, he said.
"The entire Opposition wants that there should be a discussion on electoral reforms, as such discussions have happened earlier too. This is our topmost priority," Tiwari said.
"We have a clear stand. Considering the Opposition's concerns, an indication was given by the parliamentary affairs minister that they would consider holding a discussion on electoral reforms," he said.
The Congress leader said the issue of national security needs to be discussed as the Red Fort is not safe any longer with terrorists reaching there. Besides, issues of price rise, unemployment, tinkering with federal structure, and step-motherly treatment with opposition-ruled states are also there and need to be discussed, he said.
"We also want a discussion on air pollution in the national capital," he said.
"We will meet tomorrow at 10 am in the chamber of Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha and will decide our future course of action and chalk out our strategy," Tiwari said.
The Congress' meeting was also attended by senior leaders including Jairam Ramesh, Manish Tewari, and Manickam Tagore.
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Congress using hijab issue to pacify minority anger, alleges Karnataka LoP R Ashoka
Bengaluru: Leader of Opposition in the Assembly R. Ashoka has accused the Congress government of using the hijab issue to placate what he described as discontent among minority voters after the Davanagere by-election.
In a post on X on Wednesday, Ashoka alleged that the state government, instead of addressing issues such as price rise, corruption, farmers’ distress and law and order, was attempting to retain its minority vote base by reviving the hijab issue.
Referring to the 2022 dress code introduced by the BJP government, which prohibited hijab in schools and colleges, Ashoka said the Karnataka High Court had upheld the policy and emphasised the importance of discipline in educational institutions.
He questioned the Congress government’s move to revisit the issue and asked whether setting aside the court-backed policy to benefit one community could be described as secularism.
Ashoka further alleged that while the government was willing to permit hijab, it continued to prohibit saffron shawls.
He accused the government of dividing students on religious lines rather than treating schools and colleges as spaces of equality.
Drawing a comparison with Mamata Banerjee’s government in West Bengal, Ashoka claimed that excessive appeasement politics had harmed the state and warned that the Congress in Karnataka could face a similar political response.
He said voters in Karnataka would teach the Congress a lesson for what he termed “vote-bank politics” and for compromising constitutional and judicial principles.
