The newly-elected Rajya Sabha members have been distributed seats in all 24 department-related standing committees of Parliament on Thursday, days before its monsoon session is set to begin. The Indian Parliament has 24 standing committees of which 8 are headed by Rajya Sabha members while the remaining 16 are led by lawmakers from Lok Sabha. Seven panels—home affairs, agriculture, external affairs, finance, petroleum, science and technology and industry—got one new member each. Former railway minister and senior Trinamool Congress leader Dinesh Trivedi is in the home affairs panel. A senior Rajya Sabha official said, “If a member has not taken oath, he can’t participate in the business of the House and panels are an extension of the House.”

Source: Hindustan Times July 23, 2020 16:25 UTC