Budget Session: Speaker Sumitra Mahajan calls meeting of leaders

New Delhi: Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan has called a meeting of leaders of political parties on February 22 to ensure smooth run of the Budget Session during which the government will also seek to convert six recent ordinances into legislations.

Parliament sources said Mahajan has convened a meeting of leaders of political parties over dinner on February 22, the eve of the Session, to ensure a smooth session. The session, which will begin on February 23 and conclude on May 8, will see presentation of the first full-fledged budget of the Narendra Modi government which came to power in May last year. During the session, government will push for passage of Bills on six ordinances promulgated recently. The ordinances include those on coal, mines and minerals, e-rickshaws, amendment to Citizenship Act, Land Acquisition and the one on FDI in insurance sector.

The government is especially under pressure to legislate the ordinance on insurance sector and the coal sector in view of the fact that the new systems in place for attracting FDI in insurance and for auctioning of coal blocks are not disturbed. Amongst the bills government proposes to introduce, include Amendments to Whistleblowers Protection Act, The Rights to Services and Grievances Redress Bill, Amendment to Inter-state Water Dispute Act, The Carriage by Air (Amendment) Bill, The Recognition of New Systems of Medicine Bill, Amendment to the National Commission for Women Act, and Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation (Second Amendment) Bill, the sources said.

BJP's poor showing in the Delhi Assembly polls is likely to have a bearing on the Session with opposition parties expected to make a common cause on issues like Land Acquisition ordinance which they are opposing tooth and nail. The fourth session of 16th Lok Sabha will commence on Monday, when President Pranab Mukherjee will address both Houses of Parliament assembled together in the Central Hall at 11 AM.

The Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs, which met on January 21, had recommended to the President the schedule of the Budget Session. Parliament will have a special sitting on Saturday, a holiday, for Finance Minister Arun Jaitley to present the Budget which will be preceded by the Economic Survey on February 27 and the Railway Budget on February 26. The Motion of Thanks to the President for his address will be debated on February 24 and 25.