Budget Session starts February 23, long recess agreed

Budget to be on February 29

With the Trinamul Congress’ backing, the government succeeded in getting all parties on board for more than a month-long recess of the coming Budget Session, that will begin on February 23, to allow MPs to campaign in five poll-bound states. The first part of the session will be from February 23 to March 16, and it will meet again after the recess from April 25 till May 13.

The Union Budget will be presented on Monday, February 29, and this will be preceded by the Railway Budget on February 25, and the Economic Survey a day later. The Cabinet Committee on Political Affairs approved the dates Thursday at a meeting chaired by home minister Rajnath Singh.

The Congress, sources said, had teamed up with the Left parties to persuade the TMC and other regional parties to impress upon the government not to have more than three weeks’ recess. “While parliamentary affairs minister M. Venkaiah Naidu proposed the first part of the session, from February 23 to March 16, all parties agreed to it, but the timing of the second part was contested. Mr Naidu proposed Parliament reconvene from April 18, but the Congress and Left, through a back channel, wanted TMC support for the session from April 11 by sugar-coating it saying the BJP leaders could be held back in Parliament and wouldn’t be able to campaign for the West Bengal elections,” said a senior TMC leader. Sources said TMC representative Derek O’Brien also told the all-party meeting that the Bengali new year, besides Bihu and other festivals, fell on April 14, and sought later dates for the second part of the session. “All TMC MPs, like others, will be stationed in their constituencies to campaign from the middle of March till April, and could not have attended the session. We don’t stand to gain much by ensuring that the BJP leaders are held back in Parliament and don’t campaign in West Bengal as the BJP is not a serious contender in the state,” the TMC leader added.

With the TMC backing the government move for a longer recess, the ruling side also got support from JD(U) chief Sharad Yadav, the Biju Janata Dal, Samajwadi Party and the AIADMK, sources said. The Congress and the Left reasoned that three weeks of recess was enough, but there were no takers among the regional parties, sources added.

The first part of the Budget Session will be devoted to financial matters. “In 2011, the then government decided not to refer bills to standing committees in the Budget Session when states were going to the polls and there were demands to curtail the session. But the government decided that bills will be referred to standing committees in the recess period,” Mr Naidu later told reporters.

After the last two sessions were virtually washed out due to disruptions, the government is pinning a lot of hope on the Budget Session as it is keen to push through the Goods and Services Tax Bill, the Real Estate Bill, among other key measures.