A delegation, representing seven political parties and led by Shiromani Akali Dal's (SAD) Harsimrat Kaur Badal, met President Ram Nath Kovind at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Saturday, 31 July, and raised issues pertaining to the three contentious farm laws as well as the Pegasus spyware row.
"We, a delegation of MPs representing 7 political parties, today met & apprised @rashtrapatibhvn (President) of the undemocratic stonewalling of 2 serious issues in Parliament – #FarmLaws & #PegasusSpyware. We also urged him to constitute a Joint Select Committee to resolve these issues (sic)," Badal tweeted.
Apart from Badal, the delegation comprised members from the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), and the Jammu and Kashmir National Conference (JKNC).
'Till Opposition Doesn't Unite, Govt Will Benefit'
Speaking to the media, the Akali Dal leader also pointed out that she approached leaders from Congress, TMC and DMK to raise the issues together, but no one bothered to show up. "Till the time the Opposition will not unite, the government will continue to benefit," she was quoted as saying by news agency ANI.
"Five hundred farmers lost their lives amid the ongoing protests against the Centre's farm laws. A joint committee should be formed to sort out this issue."SAD leader Harsimrat Kaur Badal, as quoted by ANI
The ongoing Monsoon Session of the Parliament has seen continuous protests by the Opposition over the farm laws as well as the Pegasus spyware controversy, leading to disruptions and adjournments of both the Houses.
Protests against the farm laws have been going on since late last year, with agitating farmers calling for their repeal and a law guaranteeing minimum support price (MSP).
The Pegasus spyware controversy, meanwhile, surfaced a day before the start of the Monsoon session with the publication of the first series of reports. Since then, multiple reports have sought to show how Opposition leaders, activists, journalists and even current ministers may have been potential targets of surveillance in the past.
(With inputs from ANI.)
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