Internal issues should not be discussed by others: Om Birla tells European Parliament VP

Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Saturday lodged a strong protest with European Parliament Vice President Nicola Beer over the passage of a proposal linked to India's internal matters.

Birla further highlighted India's sovereignty and protested against bringing proposals to the European Parliament on its internal issues.

Earlier in July, just ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to France for the Bastille Day Parade, the European Parliament adopted a resolution calling on India to act "promptly" to halt the violence in Manipur and protect religious minorities.


Om Birla insisted that every nation and parliament is sovereign and that their internal issues should not be discussed by others.

Om Birla also held bilateral discussions with the Vice President of the European Parliament Nicola Beer.

European Parliament Vice President Nicola Beer also informed Om Birla that Europe is going through challenging times and sought India's cooperation, it further stated.

Birla also invited the European Parliament vice president to witness the festival of democracy during the Indian general elections scheduled for next year.

Meanwhile, Beer congratulated Birla for a successful P20 Summit and emphasised on closer relations of the European Parliament with India.

The two-day P20 Summit in New Delhi concluded successfully on Saturday, with Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla thanking all the dignitaries for their contribution to the success of the event in India.

There were four high-level sessions that were held during the P20 Summit -- Accelerating SDGs, Sustainable Energy Transition, Women-led Development, and Transformation in People's Lives through Public Digital Platforms.

On the first day of the summit itself, the joint declaration for the 9th G20 Parliamentary Speakers' Summit (P20) was adopted with consensus to engage in parliamentary diplomacy and dialogue in relevant fora as a catalyst for promoting international peace.

The concluding part of the declaration mentioned, that the members reaffirmed their commitment to continue "joint work to make an effective and meaningful parliamentary contribution to the G20 process, as appreciated by the G20 Leaders."