TMC slams Centre for short session amid Parl, assembly SIR ‘focus’
Times of India | 10 November 2025
Kolkata: Special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls is likely to dominate the Winter sessions of Parliament and the Bengal assembly. This winter sessions will be the last complete assembly session before the 2026 polls.
Criticising Centre for a truncated Parliament session of only 15 sessions, TMC leader in the Rajya Sabha Derek O'Brien said, "The reason for this govt's Parliament-ophobia is obvious. The creaky coalition led by PM Narednra Modi shied away from a discussion on SIR (Silent Invisible Rigging) during the entire Monsoon Session of Parliament. A longer Winter session would have made them even more uncomfortable when Opposition demands discussions on unemployment and throttling federalism."
After some media reports set Nov 25 as the starting day for Bengal assembly session and its runtime as 10 days, speaker Biman Banerjee on Sunday dismissed the timelines, saying this has not been finalised yet and the 10-day sitting is "media speculation." Banerjee said, "I will let you know the dates once it is decided." Sources said the SIR-related deaths in Bengal are going to come up during the discussions, and CM Mamata Banerjee is also expected to participate in it.
In his statement, O'Brien also said: "Since 1991, the average days per Parliament session has always remained above 20. When the Narendra Modi govt came to power in 2014, this number dropped below 20 days. During the 16th Lok Sabha (2014-2019), the average days per session was 19. During the 17th Lok Sabha (2019-2024), it was 18 days. After today's announcement, it has dropped to an abysmal 17 days."