Bharatiya Janata Party president and leader of opposition L K Advani on Tuesday conceded that the National Democratic Alliance's boycott of the Budget session of Parliament had created a 'wrong perception' in the public though the alliance's grievances and protest against the United Progressive Alliance government were 'legitimate'.
Addressing the party's first parliamentary party meeting on the first business day of the monsoon session, former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, who reportedly had reservations on the boycott, said members of Parliament should be prepared to sit inside and aggressively raise the issues, sources told PTI.
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Earlier, Advani said the boycott of both Houses in the last session had created the impression that the opposition alliance wanted to avoid discussing major issues confronting the nation, the sources said.
Asserting that the NDA's concerns and grievances as also its boycott against the Congress-led coalition were 'genuine and legitimate', Advani said perhaps, the party could not communicate the same to the people, which led to the 'wrong perception'.
Virtually exhorting party MPs to make up for the last session, he asked them to raise all issues of public concern in both Houses and actively participate in the proceedings.
The opposition alliance had boycotted both Houses on most of the days of the last session. However, the Telugu Desam Party, which extends outside support to the NDA, ended its boycott towards the end of the session.
