Cong revamps its House plan

The Congress is determined not to let the forthcoming monsoon session of Parliament, beginning July 25 , replicate the Budget session. The latter dwindled away, with little work done, owing to a boycott by the Bhartiya Janata Party.

The Congress has set itself an ambitious goal. Beginning with the overhauling of its administration, it has chalked out a list of legislations that it intends to pass - without referring them to a standing committee - in the monsoon session.

This determination was expressed by UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi at a dinner meeting with UPA partners during the first anniversary celebrations of the government.

Law Minister HR Bharadwaj told Business Standard today that the BJP had apparently lifted its boycott of Parliament and had begun attending standing committee meetings.

He was confident that the Employment Guarantees Bill would be passed by the Bill-specific standing committee, as there was hardly any difference of opinion in the House over it.

The Women's Reservation Bill was introduced in 2003 by the BJP-led NDA government. It lapsed because of a lack of consensus.

The UPA, Bhardwaj said, had decided to bypass those parties - UPA or non-UPA - which were opposing the Bill. It would, instead, be passed with the help of the Left, and even the BJP, if necessary, he added.

Both these legislations are seen central to the UPA redeeming its pledge, albeit a year after it took over.

Gandhi has also quietly reshuffled the Congress to make it more effective inside Parliament. The parliamentary affairs committee --that existed during Indira Gandhi's time but had fallen into disuse --has been revived.

Seven ministers, including Ghulam Nabi Azad, Suresh Pachauri, Arjun Singh and Priyaranjan Dasmunshi, are on the committee, along with the party General Secretary Ambika Soni, Gandhi's adviser Ahmad Patel, National Advisory Council member Jairam Ramesh, and Rajya Sabha MP Rajiv Shukla. The committee will meet on Mondays and Wednesdays to do a SWOT analysis of parliamentary proceedings.

The party's media advisory board, which earlier had 15 members, has now only 6. They are Soni, Information Minister S Jaipal Reddy, minister in PMO Prithviraj Chavan, Ahmad Patel, and Shukla and Ramesh. This body will now discuss strategic issues, including the rallies and meetings Gandhi should address.

The Prime Minister confided, in some of his colleagues, his anguish at empty Opposition seats in Parliament in the Budget session.

The Congress party and the PMO are determined that this will not be repeated. The Congress is likely to follow a more aggressive parliamentary strategy in the forthcoming session.