Opposition parties attending the all party meet convened by the government on July 19, 2026. Screengrab: ANI
Opposition parties walked out of the all-party meeting convened by the Centre on Sunday (July 19, 2026), in protest of the presence of a breakaway TMC faction that claims to have joined the Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI), a Tripura-based party, ahead of the Monsoon Session of Parliament.
They returned to the meeting within a few minutes.
Trinamool Congress leader Mahua Moitra said that “the merger of the 20 MPs with NCPI has not been approved by the Speaker”.
“As per the information put out by the table office of Lok Sabha, TMC’s strength is 28. This merger has not been accepted. So, calling them for the meeting would not be right,” she said.
“This was a mark of protest against the decision of the Modi Govt to invite the NCPI that is a parking place for 20 so-called ‘rebel’ TMC MPs when a final decision is still pending with the Speaker,” Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X.
The government is expected to outline its legislative agenda during the meeting. Opposition leaders indicated they would raise a host of issues, including the alleged Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Trust donation scam, exam paper leaks, delimitation, and the role of the Lok Sabha Speaker.
(with inputs from PTI, ANI)
Published – July 19, 2026 12:38 pm IST
