Mixed bag ::: Rahul Gandhi says reference to Emergency by Speaker Om Birla was "political" and could have been avoided

 Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi, along with other Opposition leaders, today met Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla in his chamber and voiced his concerns over the reference to the Emergency made by him in the House.

Rahul Gandhi said the reference to the Emergency was "political" and could have been avoided.

Soon after Congress MP Rahul Gandhi became the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha, he met Speaker Om Birla on Thursday and voiced his displeasure over the reference to the 1975 Emergency made by the chair. 

He said it was “clearly political” and could have been avoided.

Rahul was accompanied by the Samajwadi Party’s Dharmendra Yadav and Dimple Yadav, DMK’s Kanimozhi, NCP (SP) leader Supriya Sule, RJD’s Misa Bharti and TMC’s Kalyan Banerjee, RSP’s NK Premachandran among others.

'Secret Meeting' Inside Lift? Uddhav Thackeray-Devendra Fadnavis chance encounter at Maharashtra Assembly 'lift' Raises Eyebrows  

Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray later joked about a “secret meeting”, after his accidental encounter with BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis outside an elevator in the Vidhan Sabha generated much speculation. 

The two leaders were spotted exchanging more than just a few words and even shared the lift. When asked about it later, the former Maharashtra chief minister reportedly said “they will hold all their secret meetings in the lift”.  

Maharashtra deputy CM Devendra Fadnavis ran into Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray, who was waiting for an elevator, following which the two were seen sharing the lift.  

President Murmu 

In her address to the joint sitting of Parliament, President Droupadi Murmu said that the government is fully committed to a fair investigation of the recent incidents of paper leaks and to ensure that the guilty are punished.

She also asserted there is a need to rise above party politics and undertake concrete measures nationwide.

"Whether it is competitive examinations or government recruitment, there should be no reason for any hindrance. This process requires complete transparency and probity. 

Regarding the recent instances of paper leak in some examinations, my government is committed to a fair investigation and ensuring strict punishment to the culprits," she said.