The Budget Session of Parliament beginning Monday could provide numerous sparks to bring the Opposition and the Treasury benches on the collision course and test the Modi Government’s acumen to push through its budgetary and legislative agenda. The issue of leader of Opposition and the Congress’ threat to move the court to seek the office could severely affect the ambience and pit the Treasury bench and the Congress in a bitter conflict from the day one.
The 28-day session begins on July 7 and concludes on August 14. The Rail Budget will be presented on July 8, the Economic Survey on July 9 and the General Budget on July 10.
This will be the first Budget of the Narendra Modi-led Government and that of Arun Jaitley as Union Finance Minister where he would unveil the future economic road map of the BJP Government and detail “tough decisions” that the Prime Minister spoke about last month. Curtailing budget deficit and inflation and increasing “the declining” growth rate would be on the priority list of the Finance Minister.
With Congress not anticipating a favourable ruling on the loP status, Senior Congress leader Kamal Nath on Sunday said the party “must” go to court if Speaker Sumitra Mahajan’s decision, which could be “flavoured” by BJP and Narendra Modi, went against it.
Insisting that there is no rule which says that a party cannot get loP status unless it has 10 per cent of the total strength of the 543-member lok Sabha, the former Parliamentary Affairs Minister said in Delhi that while a Speaker is generally neutral when it comes to dealing with Parliamentary processes, it may be different in a contentious situation.
In Hyderabad, Union Minister M Venkaiah Naidu said everyone must abide by the presiding officer’s decision. “There was no Opposition leader during Nehruji’s regime. There was no Opposition leader during Indira Gandhi’s era. Opposition leader was not there in Rajiv Gandhi’s rule,” Naidu contended.
Picking on BJP, Nath said, “We know the Speaker is from the BJP... Speaker is appointed by a political party... When it is a contentious situation... It (the decision on loP) will be flavoured by the BJP and Modi,” Nath told on ‘Nothing But the Truth’ programme on Headlines Today. Tossing the ball in Speaker’s court, Naidu said, “It is people’s verdict and matter related to Constitution. Speaker’s decision should be adhered to and let’s see how the Speaker decides. There are some conventions, rules and regulations, precedents and directions of the Speaker. They are all there before us. Everybody has to go by that.”
Joining the issue, another Congress leader Sachin Pilot said that having a leader of the Opposition is good for the country, good for Parliament “but if it (not having leader of the Opposition) gives BJP a misplaced sense of satisfaction then that is BJP’s choice.”
He sought to have “equitable distribution of voice” in the House. Pilot who is Rajasthan PCC chief underlined that having a leader of the Opposition will not change the arithmetic and one can still pass the law with majority. “But to have leader of the Opposition will give you that sense of balance in Parliament,” he said.
Told about BJP’s stand that there was no loP during the regime of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, he said, “This is 2014, different environment, different electorate. During Nehru’s government in 1952, there were people drawn from even the left. “You compare this situation to the 80s when the Congress had more than 400 MPs but today there are 40 parties in Parliament”.
Speaker Sumitra Mahajan had on Saturday steered clear of the issue despite the Congress pitching for it. In the month-long Parliament session, the Government will have to work out its strategy for a smooth-running of the both Houses with the cooperation of the Opposition as it battles spiraling prices, high oil import bill in the backdrop of escalating Iraq crisis.
The lok Sabha Speaker who addressed an all-party meet on Saturday said the Government is willing to discuss “any issue” in the House. Since the lok Sabha has not yet constituted parliamentary committees, Budget discussions on specific Ministries will have to happen in the two Houses.The Parliamentary Affairs Minister has already appealed the Opposition for cooperation urging them to maintain decorum during the session. External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Monday is to make statement in both the Houses of Parliament on the Indians trapped in Iraq.
The Government intends to bring Bills to replace the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India or TRAI (Amendment) Ordinance, 2014 and the Ordinance with respect to Polavaram project under Andhra Pradesh Reorganisation (Amendment) Ordinance, 2014.
The TRAI (Amendment) Ordinance cleared on May 28 ensured that the Government could appoint Nripendra Misra as Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister. The Andhra Pradesh Ordinance was promulgated on May 29, ahead of the official division of the State on June 2.According to Naidu, the Commerce Ministry will be bringing a Bill on the National Institute of Design. Various pending Bills will be reviewed and priority will be fixed on bringing them before Parliament in coordination with Opposition members.