Pahalgam attack: Owaisi demands to invite smaller parties

Even though the central government called an all-party meeting after the terrorist attack on tourists in Pahalgam, the government is planning to invite only big parties to the meeting, All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) chief Asaduddin Owaisi has alleged. He has appealed to the government to allow parties with less than five or ten MPs to participate in the meeting.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Thursday, Owaisi said that he spoke to Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju in this regard. Rijiju mentioned, "If parties with less members are to be called, it should be a very long meeting, therefore only big parties are invited." Owaisi said, "When I asked, what will become of smaller parties like us? He jokingly said, 'Your voice is already very loud. 'Because it was a conventional press conference, I fully participated."

According to Owaisi, this is not an internal meeting of any political party. This is an all-party meeting—the purpose of which is to give a message of unity within the country and take a strong stand against terrorism and those who harbour terrorists.

He questioned, “Can’t Narendra Modi give an extra hour so that the views of all parties can be heard?”

Owaisi also said, “Your party does not have a majority. Be if any party, whether it has one MP or a hundred, each of them is elected by the people. They have the right to hear their views on such a national issue. This is not a political issue, this is a question of national security. Therefore, I request the Prime Minister—this meeting should be truly all-party, all those who are represented in Parliament should be invited.”

It is worth noting that currently, Asaduddin Owaisi himself is the only MP from AIMIM in the Lok Sabha.

 The government has said that an all-party meeting on the Pahalgam attack will be held in Parliament at 6 pm on Thursday. Defence Minister Rajnath Singh will chair the meeting.

On Tuesday, militants attacked tourists in Kashmir's famous Bhaisran Valley. In the attack, 25 Indians and a Nepali national were killed. Several others are undergoing treatment for injuries. It is believed to be one of the biggest terror attacks in the valley since the 2019 Pulwama attack, in which 40 CRPF jawans were martyred.