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Updated: Dec 11, 2018 13:10 IST

As he walked into parliament for the winter session on Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi renewed his appeal to political parties to use the House for debate, even if it is a sharp debate. “It is important to have a debate... It is all right even if it is a sharp one,” PM Modi told reporters, underlining that the government was ready to discuss all issues.

PM Modi’s remarks came at a time initial election trends indicate the Congress has significantly improved its performance in the three electorally-crucial states of Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh. PM Modi did not react on the early trends of election results.

“This session is important, many issues of public importance will be taken up. I have faith that all the members of the Parliament will respect this sentiment and move ahead. Our efforts are that discussions are held on all issues,” he said, according to news agency ANI.

“I hope lawmakers will spend time in public welfare, not their own political parties,” PM Modi said.

PM Modi had made a similar point at the all party meeting yesterday when he asked the opposition to “debate and discuss”. “But if there are adjournments, then the government faces loss, the Opposition faces loss and most importantly it is a loss for the country,” Modi had said as he intervened briefly at the meeting, which parliamentary affairs minister Narendra Singh Tomar had convened a day before Parliament’s winter session starts.

The government is keen to push some of the important bills, including the one to criminalise the practice of instant divorce among a section of Muslims. It had in September approved an ordinance to criminalise the practice after it could not table the bill in the Rajya Sabha due to a lack of consensus over some of its provisions.

The bill had been earlier passed in Lok Sabha in December 2017.

The Opposition looks forward to this session to raise its pet issues such as the Rafale aircraft deal, the alleged neglect of the farmers, and the economic situation in the country. The Congress has accused the government of wrongdoings in the deal.