Today in Politics: PM Modi to inaugurate Assam investment summit; Parliamentary panel on simultaneous polls to meet

Union Ministers S Jaishankar, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Ashwini Vaishnaw, Sarbananda Sonowal and Pabitra Margherita will also be present at the summit while Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari will virtually address a session.

The investment summit in Assam will include an inaugural session, seven ministerial sessions and 14 thematic sessions. It will also include a comprehensive exhibition illustrating the state’s economic landscape.

Meanwhile, President Droupadi Murmu is in Bihar to attend the centenary celebration of the Patna Medical College on Tuesday.

‘One Nation, One Election’ panel meeting

The third meeting of the Parliamentary committee examining the two Bills for simultaneous elections will be held on Tuesday, with former Chief Justice of India U U Lalit, and others from the legal fraternity, being called to give suggestions before the panel.

The Indian Express has learnt the panel will hear the views of Niten Chandra, Secretary, High-Level Committee on Simultaneous Elections in India; Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi, Chairperson of the 22nd Law Commission of India; U U Lalit, former Chief Justice of India; and E M Sudarsana Natchiappan, former MP and senior advocate at the Supreme Court.

The last meeting of the committee was held on January 31, where discussions were held on “the procedure and modalities for examination of the Amendment Bills”. The committee had also discussed plans to hold an extensive public consultation and awareness campaign, including initiatives like essay-writing and debate competitions for school and college students.

Opposition members, including leaders from the Congress and the Trinamool Congress, had opposed the idea, pointing out that the Bills are yet to be passed by Parliament.

An indicative list of 23 different categories of stakeholders who will be called to depose before the committee included political parties, retired judges, the Election Commissioners (current and former), industry bodies, trade unions, farmers’ unions, management institutes, think tanks, political analysts and election strategists and public sector undertakings. To seek public views, the committee is expected to set up a website for submissions.

Pending CAG reports in Delhi Assembly

The newly elected BJP government in Delhi is set to table in its first Assembly session the 14 pending reports of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) on the previous AAP government’s performance, fulfilling one of its election promises.

During the poll campaign, the BJP had frequently targeted the AAP on corruption – from the ‘Sheesh Mahal’ row to the alleged excise policy scam – and claimed the Arvind Kejriwal-led party had withheld the reports.

Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta had announced February 20, shortly after taking oath of office, that the reports would be made public in the first session under the new government. The BJP had repeatedly demanded the release of these reports during the AAP’s tenure, even moving the court to direct the government to table them.

The pending CAG audits include reviews of state finances, public health infrastructure, vehicular air pollution, liquor regulation and the functioning of the Delhi Transport Corporation, among others.

Meanwhile, in Punjab, the AAP government will bring a resolution in the Assembly on Tuesday against the Centre’s draft of the National Policy Framework on Agricultural Marketing.

The Punjab government last month rejected the Centre’s draft policy, asserting that it is an attempt to bring back the “contentious” provisions of the three farms laws repealed in 2021 by the Centre after a year-long protest by farmers. The resolution comes days after protesting farmers’ groups met with Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, with the next meeting scheduled for March 19.

– With PTI inputs