AAP to boycott President's address to joint sitting of parliament over farmers protest

A day before the start of the Budget Session of Parliament, the AAP's Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh on Thursday said his party will boycott the president's address to the joint sitting of both houses over the ongoing farmers protest.

Apart from AAP, 16 opposition parties have decided to boycott the president's address in solidarity with the farmers protesting the new farm laws.

The 16 parties that will boycott President Ram Nath Kovind's the address on Friday are the Congress, Nationalist Congress Party, National Conference, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Trinamool Congress, Shiv Sena, Samajwadi Party, Rashtriya Janata Dal, Communist Party of India (Marxist), CPI, Indian Union Muslim League, RSP, Peoples Democratic Party, MDMK, Kerala Congress (M) and the All India United Democratic Front.

"The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) will boycott President Ram Nath Kovind's address on Friday in Parliament ahead of budget session over the ongoing farmers protest," Singh said. The AAP has four MPs -- Sanjay Singh, N D Gupta, Bhagwant Mann and Sushil Gupta.

The 16 opposition parties have demanded an independent probe into the Centre's role in the violence that shook the national capital during the farmers' tractor parade on Republic Day.

They also demanded the repeal of the three farm laws and criticised the central government for remaining unresponsive to the demands of lakhs of farmers protesting against the agri laws.