Congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Sunday faced criticism from the BJP and its ally JD(U) for “live-tweeting” some of the issues raised by different parties at an all-party meeting, with Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju calling for respecting parliamentary traditions.Ramesh, who attended the meeting, posted on X while the deliberations were on, “In today’s all-party meeting of floor leaders chaired by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, the JD(U) leader demanded special category status for Bihar. The YSRCP leader demanded special category status for Andhra Pradesh. Strangely, the TDP leader kept quiet on the matter.”
His post was the first comment from any leader attending the meeting about the issues being raised ahead of the start of Parliament’s Budget session.
JD(U) MP Sanjay Kumar Jha, who represented his party in the meeting, noted later without naming Ramesh that a senior Congress leader was posting “live updates” while he highlighted his party’s position on issues of Bihar.
“I wish this senior Congress leader had respected the sanctity of the Parliamentary proceedings,” he said.
Congress spokesperson Pawan Khera took a swipe at Jha, saying, “Jha Sahib, there’s a difference between an All Party meeting and ‘Parliamentary Proceedings’.”
Quoting the JD(U) MP, Rijiju said, “This is unfortunate… Everyone must maintain the sanctity, propriety and protocol of Parliamentary traditions.”