NCP(SP) MPs to Meet PM Modi on Monday

Over Maharashtra Issues, FCRA and Delimitation

Report By Y-Trendz

Mumbai/New Delhi — August 9, 2026

A delegation of Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) Members of Parliament is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday, bypassing a Parliament session repeatedly disrupted

by protests to press the Centre directly on a cluster of Maharashtra-specific concerns, even as the party stakes out sharp positions on two contentious national bills.

The Meeting

NCP(SP) working president and Baramati MP Supriya Sule announced on Saturday that eight of the party's MPs had sought, and secured, an appointment with the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister's Office has scheduled the meeting for 11:00 a.m. Monday at Modi's office in Parliament.

Sule explained that the decision to approach Modi directly stemmed from the near-total breakdown of normal parliamentary business in recent sittings. With debate and question hour repeatedly disrupted, she said, the MPs concluded that raising constituency-level concerns through the floor of the House was no longer a workable route, prompting the delegation to request face time with the Prime Minister instead. "Parliament is not functioning," she told reporters, adding that Modi had agreed to the meeting to discuss issues tied to the MPs' constituencies.

What the Delegation Plans to Raise

According to Sule, the delegation's agenda centers on a set of acute, on-the-ground problems affecting Maharashtra: chronic water shortages in several districts, a continuing wave of farmer suicides, strains created by rapid and often unplanned urbanisation, and bureaucratic hurdles that have stalled the utilisation of MP Local Area Development Scheme (MPLAD) funds — the Rs 5 crore per MP allocation meant for local infrastructure and welfare projects, which Sule indicated has faced implementation delays.

The choice to route these grievances through a direct meeting with the Prime Minister, rather than through state government channels or floor debate, underscores both the severity the party attaches to these issues and the practical reality that parliamentary disruption has left MPs with few other avenues to secure the Centre's attention before the current session concludes.

Party's Stand on the FCRA Amendment Bill

Beyond the constituency issues, Sule used Saturday's press interaction to lay out the NCP(SP)'s position on the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026, which is expected to come up for discussion and passage in Parliament shortly. The bill proposes creating a Designated Authority to oversee foreign contributions and any assets acquired using such funds in cases where an organisation's FCRA registration has been cancelled, surrendered, or has lapsed; it also requires that if such assets include a place of worship, the property's religious character must be preserved.

Sule said her party rejects the bill in its current form and wants the government to either withdraw it entirely or send it to a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for detailed scrutiny. She argued that foreign funding should not automatically be treated with suspicion, drawing a comparison to remittances sent home by overseas Indians, and said contributions supporting welfare work for poor children in particular should not face unnecessary restriction. "We reject and disagree with the present form of the FCRA bill," she said, adding that opposition alone is insufficient in a functioning democracy and that all parties should be given the chance to debate the legislation before it is rushed through.

Delimitation: A More Calibrated Position

On the separate and politically sensitive question of the proposed 131st Constitution Amendment Bill governing delimitation of Lok Sabha constituencies, Sule reiterated that the exercise should go ahead but only if conducted fairly. The NCP(SP), a INDIA bloc constituent and ally of Tamil Nadu's ruling DMK, has previously voiced concern that southern states — which have implemented population-control measures more successfully than several northern states — could be penalised with proportionally fewer seats under a delimitation formula based on current population figures.

Sule's posture has drawn scrutiny within the opposition in recent weeks after she signalled the party might support the bill if the government commits certain conditions to writing, a shift from the NCP(SP)'s outright opposition during an April special session. Senior Congress leader P. Chidambaram had separately alleged that the BJP was working to secure the backing of regional allies, including the NCP(SP) and DMK, for the legislation — a claim Sule has pushed back against by insisting her party's position remains conditional and unresolved rather than settled.

Broader Political Backdrop

Sule also addressed unrelated developments during Saturday's briefing, including renewed calls for a Special Investigation Team to probe alleged use of pellet guns and tear gas during student protests near Jantar Mantar linked to the NEET examination controversy, and comments backing Uddhav Thackeray's claim to the Shiv Sena's original party symbol, arguing the mantle passed to him directly from his father, Bal Thackeray.

Monday's meeting comes at a moment of heightened attention to how opposition parties, particularly those within Maharashtra's fractured political landscape, are managing their relationships with the Centre. The NCP(SP), formed after Sharad Pawar's split from the undivided NCP, has sought to balance sharp opposition to some Central legislation with pragmatic, issue-specific engagement — a balancing act Monday's Prime Minister's Office meeting is expected to test further.

This report is based on verified reporting from The Tribune, ANI, Asianet Newsable, and other Indian news outlets as of August 9, 2026.