Charanjit Singh Channi to head Parliamentary panel on agriculture
Former Punjab Chief Minister and Congress leader Charanjit Singh Channi was on Thursday appointed chairman of the key department related parliamentary committee on agriculture with the Lok Sabha Speaker consituting all 24 panels — 16 of Lok Sabha and eight of Rajya Sabha.
Congress has bagged the presidency of four panels — Shashi Tharoor (external affairs), Digvijay Singh (education) and Saptagiri Ulka rural development.
Ruling NDA allies TDP, Shiv Sena, JD (U) and NCP walked away with the chairperson-ship of one committee each.
Leader of opposition has been made a member of defence committee and his mother Sonia is yet to be named on any panel though there are several vacancies.
Among opposition parties TMC and DMK MPs will head two committees each.
The rest of the panels have been retained by the BJP with Lok Sabha Speaker naming former minister and Hamirpur MP Anurag Thakur as chairman of the committee on coal, mines and steel.
Congress general secretary and Rajya Sabha chief whip Jairam Ramesh has been dropped as chairman of the committee on science, technology and environment of which he has now been made a member. This panel will be headed by BJP’s Bhubaneshwar Kalita.
The following leaders will head eight committees of Rajya Sabha — TMC’s Dola Sen commerce; BJP’s Radha Mohan Das Agarwal home affairs; Congress’ Digvijay Singh education, women and child and youth affairs; DMK’s Tiruchi Siva industry; BJP’s Bhubaneshwar Kalita science, technology and environment; JDU’s Sanjay Jha transport, tourism and culture; SP’s Ram Gopal Yadav retained as chairman of health pane;; BJP’s Brij Lal personnel, public grievances, law and justice.
In Lok Sabha the following MPs will head the 16 panels — Congress’ Charanjit Singh Channi agriculture; BJP’s Nishikant Dubey communications and information technology; Radha Mohan Singh defence; Shiv Sena’s Srirang Barne energy; Congress’ Shashi Tharoor external affairs; Bhartruhari Mahtab finance; DMK’s K Kanimozhi consumer affairs and food; BJP’s Basavaraj Bommai labour and textiles, skill development; NCP’s Sunil Tatkare petroleum; BJP’s CM Ramesh Railways, TDP’s Magunta Reddy housing and urban development; BJP’s Rajiv Rudy water resources; TMC’s Kirti Azad chemicals and fertilsers; Congress’ Saptagiri Ulka rural development; Anurag Thakur coal, mines and steel; BJP’s PC Mohan social justice.
TRIBUNE NEWS SERVICE
