PM Modi, Rahul Gandhi Exchange Views at Parliament Tea Meet

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi, and other political figures gathered for an unofficial tea meeting in Parliament after the Lok Sabha adjournment. Discussions included topics like the Ukraine and Gaza situations. The session saw significant productivity, with 12 bills introduced and four passed.

In an informal tea meeting organized in the Parliament complex, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, and various opposition leaders convened after the Lok Sabha was adjourned last Friday.

PM Modi, along with Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, were seen exchanging greetings with Gandhi and other opposition leaders. During the meeting, Gandhi sought updates from Defence Minister Rajnath Singh about the situation in Ukraine and Gaza, to which Singh responded that India was closely monitoring the developments.

The current Parliament session, initially expected to conclude on August 12, was adjourned sine die by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla. Traditionally, the adjournment is followed by a tea meeting hosted by the Speaker. This gathering saw the participation of several Union Ministers, including Kiren Rijiju and Piyush Goyal, along with MPs like Sudip Bandyopadhyay and Kanimozhi.

Earlier, Speaker Om Birla provided a comprehensive account of the session's proceedings, noting that it involved 15 sittings over 115 hours. The Finance Minister presented the Union Budget for 2024-25, which was discussed for over 27 hours. Birla highlighted that 12 government bills were introduced during the session, with four being passed. He praised the session for its 136 percent productivity rate.

(With inputs from agencies.)