New Delhi [India], November 25 : The Congress said on Monday that it is firm on its demand for Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into allegations pertaining to Adani executives in the United States in an alleged bribery case.
A meeting of Congress Parliamentary Strategy Group meeting was held here which was presided over by the Congress president and Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge and attended by Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, KC Venugopal and other leaders.
Briefing reporters after the meeting, Congress general secretary-in-charge of communications, Jairam Ramesh said the JPC probe "was necessary" in view of the recent revelations made in the US.
He said various issues came up for discussion, which will be raised in both the Houses of the Parliament.
He said Congress will continue to demand JPC into Adani issue. He said the party is keen to discuss Manipur situation, border agreement with China, "social polarisation" and pollution.
"We are not going to compromise. The need for a JPC has been further reinforced by the indictment that has been handed down by the US agencies and the US courts. We will continue to demand JPC. We will continue a demand for a discussion on Manipur and Nagaland. Many opposition parties want a discussion on free and fair elections, so there are a number of issues that we have discussed," he told ANI.
The Adani Group has denied the allegations made by the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the US Department of Justice and said it has always upheld and is steadfastly committed to maintaining the highest standards of governance, transparency and regulatory compliance across all jurisdictions of its operations.
Congress MP Pramod Tiwari earlier accused the BJP-led central government of refusing to engage in discussions about Adani issue, Sambhal violence and inflation.
"We are meeting today to make a strategy (for Parliament session). We had only demanded a discussion (in Parliament today) but the government has no intention to have a discussion."
The Winter Session of Parliament commenced on Monday morning but faced early disruptions, leading to the adjournment of both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha for the day.
In the Rajya Sabha, proceedings were stalled as Opposition MPs demanded a discussion on allegations of bribery involving the Gautam Adani group. The Upper House was initially adjourned until 11:45 am, but continued demands from Opposition MPs for a discussion on the Adani issue led to its adjournment for the rest of the day.
In the Lok Sabha, proceedings began with Speaker Om Birla reading out obituary references before adjourning the session until noon. Shortly thereafter, the Chair adjourned the House for the day, with both Houses scheduled to reconvene on Wednesday.