New Delhi: A key meeting of the Union Cabinet -- called on the first day of the Parliament's five-day special session -- was held this evening, sources said. The meet grabbed eyeballs in view of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's earlier comment that "historic decisions" will be taken in this special session and there was speculation that the cabinet may clear anything from reservation for women or Other Backward Classes, "One Nation One Election" and even a change of name of the country. There were hopes of clarity after the meet, but the suspense continued with the government skipping the customary briefing.
Besides the PM's statement, what had spiked interest in the cabinet meet were a series of key meetings held ahead of it.
Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi met Home Minister Amit Shah. BJP chief JP Nadda was also present in the meeting. Mr Goyal and Mr Joshi are scheduled to meet PM Modi now.
A list of eight bills which will be taken up for discussion in the special session was given to the opposition by the government in an all-party meeting on Sunday. The controversial bill for the appointment of election officers, which was previously believed to be part of the agenda, was dropped amid protests by the opposition.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi initiatied the discussion on the 'Parliamentary journey of 75 years starting from Samvidhan Sabha - achievements, experiences, memories and learnings' in the Lok Sabha today. he referred to the Parliament shifting to the new building on Tuesday and said "bidding goodbye to this building is an emotional moment".
Referring from the times of Jawaharlal Nehru and Lal Bahadur Shastri to Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Manmohan Singh, PM Modi said that they have given new direction to the nation under their leadership and today is an occasion to highlight their achievements.