By IANS,
New Delhi: Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee Tuesday chaired an all-party meeting to arrive at a consensus over allowing foreign direct investment (FDI) in the retail sector. But the meeting failed to reach a breakthrough.
The finance minister is now scheduled to brief Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
The meeting at the parliament annexe was attended by opposition parties like Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the Left, AIADMK, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Samajwadi Party as well as the Congress and its allies like the Trinamool Congress and DMK.
The meeting was being seen as an effort by the government to reach out to the opposition as five days of parliament’s winter session have been lost without transacting any major business. The winter session is slated to end Dec 21.
Soon after the meeting, both houses of parliament had convened at 11 a.m. But within minutes, the presiding officers had to adjourn the respective houses till noon.
“It is likely that the finance minister will meet the prime minister before the house re-convenes,” a senior Congress party leader said, adding that the treasury may also seek to make a statement in the two houses.