Govt ready to discuss any issue in the Budget session

NEW DELHI: The government on Saturday expressed its readiness to have discussion on any issue as approved by the presiding officer in the coming Budget session of Parliament.

This was conveyed by top Congress leaders led by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at a dinner meeting called by Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee in the run up to the budget session starting from Feb 25.

Office bearers of Congress in Lok Sabha including leader of the House Pranab Mukherjee, Parliamentary Affairs Minister P R Dasmunsi and party whips Krishna Tirath and Madhusuman Mistry attended the meeting.

Congress president and parliamentary party leader Sonia Gandhi could not attend the meeting as she was not in town.

Similar meetings were held with NDA constituents and leaders of the non-NDA and non-Congress parties yesterday and this afternoon respectively.

Speaker Somnath Chatterjee has also called a luncheon meeting with leaders of all political parties together tomorrow on the eve of the Budget session.