All Party Meet LIVE: The Central government has convened an all-party meeting on the West Asia crisis today, 25 March.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh is chairing the meeting that began at 5 PM at the Parliament complex.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, External Affairs Minister Dr S. Jaishankar, Petroleum Minister Hardeep Puri and Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri are present at the meeting, news agency ANI said.
Leaders from other parties, including Sasmit Patra (BJD), Lallan Singh (JDU), Mukul Wasnik, and Tariq Anwar, Dharmendra Yadav from SP, and John Brittas from CPIM, have also arrived, the agency said.
The meeting comes amid escalating tensions in West Asia, which have disrupted critical maritime corridors and raised concerns about the safety of Indian nationals in Gulf nations.
The all-party meeting follows Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address to Parliament on the situation in West Asia. In his statement in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday, PM Modi said the government has constituted seven empowered groups to develop strategies on fuel, supply chains and fertilisers, among others, to mitigate the impact of the Iran-Israel-US conflict.
Oppn seeks debate
Rajya Sabha’s Leader of the Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge has said instead of the meeting a debate on West Asia crisis should have been held during the ongoing Budget Session of Parliament.
Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, said on Tuesday that he would not be able to attend the all-party meeting, as he is scheduled to attend a programme in Kerala. But Gandhi cancelled his Kerala visit due to concerns about his mother, Sonia Gandhi's, health. Sonia is undergoing treatment at a hospital in Delhi.
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