Guwahati, Assam – Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi on Monday expressed profound disappointment with the government’s steadfast refusal to engage in parliamentary discussions on pressing national security concerns, specifically the recent Pahalgam terror attack and the ongoing ‘Operation Sindoor’. This comes amidst the current monsoon session, where the opposition’s calls for a dedicated debate on these sensitive issues have reportedly fallen on deaf ears.
Following a meeting of the Business Advisory Committee (BAC), Gogoi addressed reporters, revealing that the opposition’s plea for a special parliamentary session to address these matters was outright rejected. Even more concerning, he noted, was the government’s continued silence on the topics within the ongoing monsoon session itself. “Various parties had requested that a special session be called on Pahalgam and Operation Sindoor… The government rejected the demand for a special session, and now, even in the monsoon session, they are not discussing Pahalgam and Operation Sindoor,” Gogoi stated, lamenting the BAC meeting’s agenda, which he described as solely focused on government bills.
Gogoi sharply criticised the government for the conspicuous absence of both incidents from the official BAC agenda. He urged the government to publicly commit to a specific date for these vital discussions, emphasising the severe nature of the security threats at hand. “The government should clarify which day they will hold this discussion. It is being mentioned that the Prime Minister is going on a foreign tour, and I believe that is important, but today we were meeting for the first time for the monsoon session… Could the discussion not have happened today… or could it not happen tomorrow?… The government should clarify when it will hold the discussion,” he pressed.
BAC meetings for both Houses of Parliament convened on Monday, with the Rajya Sabha session chaired by its Chairman at 1 PM and the Lok Sabha meeting led by the Speaker at 2 PM. These crucial meetings are designed to chart the legislative course and determine topics for discussion during the session. However, Gogoi highlighted that neither Operation Sindoor nor the Pahalgam attack found a place on the list of priorities, suggesting that the government’s legislative agenda is taking precedence over critical national security discourse. Opposition parties have consistently pushed for greater accountability and transparency regarding recent terror-related incidents, but Monday’s developments indicate these concerns are being sidelined.