Opposition walks out of all-party meeting over Kiren Rijiju's invite to rebel TMC MPs

NEW DELHI: A symbolic walkout by several Opposition parties marked the all-party meeting ahead of the Monsoon Session on Sunday after Lok Sabha Speaker approved separate seating for 20 rebel Trinamool Congress (TMC) MPs who have formed the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI). The Opposition leaders later rejoined the meeting, saying the walkout was meant to register their protest against the decision. 'Where is the merger'TMC MP Mahua Moitra said the entire Opposition, including the Congress, Samajwadi Party, DMK, JMM, Aam Aadmi Party, National Conference, Left parties and Shiv Sena (UBT), walked out of the meeting in protest. "Today, the entire opposition including Congress, the Samajwadi Party, DMK, JMM, Aam Aadmi Party, National Conference, Left parties, Shiv Sena UBT have all walked out of the all-party meeting in protest because the so-called NCPI, which is an unrecognized party," she said. Moitra argued that the Speaker had not approved the merger of the rebel MPs and that the disqualification petitions against them were still pending. "The strength of the All India Trinamool Congress in the list provided by the table office is shown to be 28 members. These so-called rebel 20 MPs, their merger has not been approved by the Speaker. The 20 disqualification petitions are still pending. After the 91st Amendment, there is no room for a separate bloc. So on what grounds did the Parliamentary Affairs Minister extend an invitation to these 20 rebel MPs and how are they attending this meeting?" she asked. "We have registered our strong protest and walked out as a symbol of our protest. We thank all our opposition parties," she added. Earlier in the day, Moitra had questioned the Speaker's decision to allot separate seating to the rebel MPs, saying, "There has been no merger allowed. Where is the merger? Where is the letter of the NCPI allowing the merger? There is no letter which has been given." Senior TMC leader Saugata Roy also objected to the move. "Until last night, their party had not been recognized by the Speaker," Roy said. Reacting to Parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju's invitation to NCPI leader Sudip Bandyopadhyay for the all-party meeting, Roy said, "We are against it. We will protest." NCPI defends participationNCPI leader and former TMC parliamentary party leader Sudip Bandyopadhyay defended his party's participation, saying they attended the meeting after receiving an official invitation. "We were invited, and we attended—representing the new party with 20 MPs. Our stance is that the House belongs to the Opposition; this must be acknowledged. The government, too, must agree and take the initiative to ensure the House functions smoothly," he said. He said the newly formed party remained committed to secularism, communal harmony and national unity. "Furthermore, we are committed to our party's principles: secularism, communal harmony, and national unity. These are the firm policies enshrined in the NCPI's constitution. We believe this is significant because, among the 20 MPs who formed the NCPI, three are Muslim," Bandyopadhyay said. The dispute over the NCPI's recognition and participation has added to tensions ahead of the Monsoon Session, with the TMC insisting that the rebel MPs continue to face disqualification proceedings and cannot be treated as a separate parliamentary bloc.