If the atmosphere in Parliament remains disruption-free, the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government may extend the upcoming Budget session by two weeks till the middle of August and take the chance to introduce some of its pet Bills.
The Budget session is expected to start from June 29.
After the Lok Sabha session was adjourned sine die today, top leaders of different political parties met in the Speaker’s chamber. There, Leader of the Lok Sabha, Finance Minister Pranab Mukehrjee, told Leader of Opposition L K Advani that the government was willing to extend the Budget session for another two weeks.
“I told Advani that if there are no disruptions, the government would like to continue the session till middle of August,” Mukherjee told Business Standard.
Taking a step ahead, Mukherjee also said that if the Opposition co-operated, the new UPA government was even willing to hold 26 weeks of Parliament session in a year following earlier practice. This will effectively mean that Houses will sit for six months in a year. The Left, especially, CPI leader Gurudas Dasgupta, had been relentlessly demanding more sitting of Parliament. More sitting of the House will also enable the MPs to earn more daily emoluments.
Mukherjee also admitted that the Opposition parties, especially the BJP, had demonstrated that their attitude in the first session of the 15th Lok Sabha had changed. “They have shown a positive attitude. I hope they will continue with this in the coming days as well.”
Many of the ministries have planned to initiate new legislation as part of their 100-days programme under the direction of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. There is pending legislation like the Insurance Bill, the LIC Bill and legislation on banking reform. In the social sector too, the government has an ambitious plan to bring in the food security Bill to provide subsidised foodgrain to families below the poverty line (BPL).
According to parliamentary managers of the Congress, if the government is able to hold a longer Budget session, some of the Bills would be introduced or passed in that session itself.
The government is planning to table the General Budget on July 3. It is gearing up to pass the Budget before July 31 to avoid another vote-on-account.
