Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla will host a celebration in Parliament’s Central Hall on Tuesday to commemorate the country’s great legislative tradition and pledge to make India a developed nation by 2047, news agency PTI reported. The almost one-and-a-half-hour event will begin and finish with the national anthem, followed by lunch. Later, all MPs will be led to the new Parliament building by the senior leaders.
“Members of Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha are requested to assemble in the Central Hall of Parliament at 11 A.M. on 19.09.2023 for a function to commemorate the rich legacy of the Parliament of India and resolve to make Bharat a developed Nation by 2047,” a Rajya Sabha bulletin was quoted by PTI in its report.
The welcoming address will be delivered by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi, and senior legislators will also speak at the event.
According to sources, the first speaker would be BJP MP Maneka Gandhi, who is also the senior most Lok Sabha member. Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has been invited to speak at the celebration after Maneka Gandhi, but sources close to him say Singh has been ill for some time and may not be attending, PTI reported.
Shibu Soren, a senior Parliamentarian with more Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha experience than any other member, will also speak at the ceremony.
Piyush Goyal, Leader of the House in Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, Leader of the Opposition in the Upper House, and Congress leader in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury will also speak on the occasion.
During the occasion, the prime minister is also scheduled to bring a copy of the Constitution to the centre chamber of Parliament, according to sources.
Before the Central Hall ceremony, three different group portraits will be taken in the inner courtyard of the ancient Parliament building, the first of MPs from both Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha, the second of RS members and the third of LS members.
The Lok Sabha will convene at 1.15 p.m., followed by the Rajya Sabha at 2.15 p.m. in the new edifice.
Senior union ministers Piyush Goyal and Pralhad Joshi personally oversaw the preparations for the ceremony and spoke with officials. Following the union cabinet meeting, they went to the central hall.
The new Parliament building’s proceedings will begin on Ganesh Chaturthi, which is considered auspicious for any fresh beginning.