Opposition members abruptly walked out of a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) meeting discussing the Waqf (Amendment) Bill on Wednesday, claiming that the proceedings had become a mockery.

However, they returned after about an hour, amidst indications that the committee chairperson would seek an extension for the committee’s term.

According to reports, the committee’s tenure might be extended until the first week of the Budget Session, although the final decision will be made by the Lok Sabha.

The reports further suggested that Opposition leaders left the meeting midway citing that the chairman had announced to table the draft of Waqf (Amendment) report of JPC on November 29 which all Opposition parties have boycotted. They demanded an extension of the JPC.

Earlier, Congress’s Gaurav Gogoi, DMK’s A Raja, AAP’s Sanjay Singh, and TMC’s Kalyan Banerjee protested against the conduct of committee chairperson Jagdambika Pal, accusing him of wanting to conclude the proceedings by the November 29 deadline without adhering to the necessary processes.

Gogoi noted that Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla had suggested the possibility of an extension for the committee, but it seemed that a “big minister” was influencing Pal’s actions.

“It is a mockery.” Meanwhile, YSR Congress MP V. Vijaysai Reddy stated that all parties not aligned with the BJP were in favor of an extension, but Pal insisted on completing the work to ensure the report could be presented in the Lok Sabha by November 29,” the TMC MP said.

Sanjay Singh, one of the JPC members, said: “Until the report is finalised, all the stakeholders are heard and the JPC tour is completed. I think submitting a draft report before that is wrong. The speaker had assured us that he would extend the time of the JPC. Sidelining all these things you are saying that the draft report is ready to submit. You haven’t heard Delhi, Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab and Uttar Pradesh government.”

Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday wondered why Industrialist Gautam Adani was not in jail when hundreds of people were arrested in the country on tiny charges.

Speaking to reporters outside Parliament, Gandhi said, “You think the Adanis are going to accept the charges? Which world are you living in? Obviously, he is going to deny the charges.”

The former Congress chief further alleged that the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led central government is protecting the Billionaire. “The point is he has to be arrested. As we have said, hundreds of people are being arrested on tiny charges and the gentleman has been indicted in the US for thousands of crores. He should be in jail. The government is protecting him,” he said.

The statement from Gandhi comes hours after the Adani Group refuted the charges made against the billionaire and his nephew Sagar Adani with violations of the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) in the indictment filed by US authorities in a court in a bribery case.

Congress general secretary in charge of communications Jairam Ramesh said that it is no surprise that the Modani ecosystem has unleashed significant legal forces today. “Now that it faces serious repercussions from countries where it cannot exert influence or undermine the systems, the Modani ecosystem is resorting to damage control through denial.”

He emphasised that this ridiculous attempt cannot minimise the intensity of the accusations made by US agencies.

“The indictment from the U.S. Department of Justice clearly indicates that Gautam S. Adani, Sagar R. Adani, and others ‘devised a scheme to offer, authorize, make, and promise bribe payments to Indian government officials in exchange for these officials facilitating state electricity distribution companies in entering Power Sale Agreements (PSAs) with SECI’ (para 47),” Ramesh noted in a post on X.

He further pointed out that the indictment also claims they “offered and promised approximately Rs 2,029 crore (around USD 265 million) in bribes to Indian government officials in return for facilitating the execution of PSAs by state electricity distribution companies”.

Additionally, it alleges high-level corruption, suggesting that Sagar R Adani and Vneet S Jainn had “covertly influenced the SECI process regarding the reallocation of 2.3 GW Power Purchase Agreements (PPAs) to a subsidiary of the Indian Energy Company,” Ramesh added.

He highlighted that the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) is a public sector enterprise under the Union Ministry of New and Renewable Energy.

Ramesh argued that the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), and SEBI should be proactively investigating these revelations.

“It is their duty to act in the nation’s interest, not to serve as instruments of a corrupt political-business alliance,” he asserted.

“This is a crucial moment for our institutions and those who hold positions within them. History will neither forgive nor forget this moment. For our part, we will persist in addressing these issues in Parliament and with the public,” Ramesh said.

Shiv Sena leader and former Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde said that he will accept Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s decision on the Mahayuti alliance’s CM’s choice.

Addressing the media in Mumbai, the former Chief Minister called PM Modi the head of the family, and said that the BJP leadership must not consider him an obstacle in government formation.

He said that he conveyed to the Prime Minister that if there is any problem in forming the government in Maharashtra because of him, then they should not bring any doubt in their mind and whatever decision PM Modi takes, that decision is acceptable to him. 

The Shiv Sena leader also said that his party will support whatever decision the BJP leadership takes regarding the coveted post. He said he told PM Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday that their decision would be binding on him and Shiv Sena.

Eknath Shinde further expressed that he had worked as a common man and never considered himself as the chief minister. He mentioned that he had always decided that when he is in a position of power, he will give it back to the public because he came from a poor family, and could understand the pain and hardships of the people of the state.

He mentioned that as a Chief Minister, he tried to take forward the ideals of Shiv Sena founder Bal Thackeray and PM Modi. He expressed that he is very satisfied with all the work they have done in the last 2.5 years, and not the kind who gets upset. He added that they are the kind of people who fight, fight for the people.

Meanwhile, Maharashtra BJP chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule thanked Eknath Shinde for his stand on the CM post. The BJP Chief said that Shinde has always respected and obeyed the central leadership, and followed every instruction by the central leadership of the BJP. He concluded that Eknath Shinde has acted as a true Mahayuti leader. 

In the Maharashtra assembly election, the Mahayuti coalition won 230 out of 288 seats. The BJP secured the highest 132 seats, making Devendra Fadnavis the favourite for the CM’s post.

Eknath Shinde became the chief minister of Maharashtra in 2022, after engineering a vertical split in Shiv Sena and joining hands with the BJP. He resigned on Tuesday.