NEW DELHI: Congress leader Vijay Wadettiwar on Saturday accused the Centre of acting arbitrarily over the proposed delimitation exercise, questioning why the government was reluctant to convene an all-party meeting on the issue.His remarks came a day after Congress president and Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the fourth time, demanding an all-party meeting to discuss the delimitation proposals before they are finalised and introduced in Parliament.“Modi Govt is acting arbitrarily. They did not even get the majority; they formed the Govt with support of other parties. Opposition is strong. But irrespective of the Opposition being strong or small, such matters should be discussed by both sides…Why is the Govt scared? Because they have done wrong. So, they won’t convene (an all-party meeting) and discuss…” Wadettiwar said.He stressed that matters of national importance should be discussed with both the ruling alliance and the Opposition, irrespective of the latter’s strength.Kharge flags 64-day delay in proroguing ParliamentIn his letter to Modi on Friday, Kharge raised procedural and constitutional concerns over the status of Parliament’s Monsoon Session, which was adjourned sine die on August 13 but had not been formally prorogued.“It has already been 64 days since the Monsoon Session of Parliament was adjourned sine die on August 13, 2026 and both Houses of Parliament are yet to be prorogued. This scenario is unprecedented,” Kharge wrote.Adjournment sine die suspends parliamentary proceedings indefinitely without specifying a date for the next sitting. Prorogation, by contrast, formally ends a session through an order issued by the President of India.
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Kharge argued that the prolonged delay in proroguing both Houses had fuelled speculation about a possible sudden reconvening of Parliament or an extension of the session, potentially bypassing the standard notice periods for lawmakers.Kharge urged the Centre to clarify the status of the Monsoon Session and convene an all-party meeting before introducing any new delimitation proposals.The Congress has also called for political parties and regional stakeholders to be given sufficient time to examine draft legislation before it is brought to Parliament.That shift from constitutional mandate to parliamentary choice was the provision that most alarmed critics.
