NEW DELHI : The Budget session of Parliament resumes tomorrow after about a month of recess, with the Opposition all braced up to corner the government over the leaked JPC report and alleged interference in CBI investigating the coal scam among a host of other issues including, of course, the brutal rape of a five-year-old girl in the capital.
The leaked JPC report has given a clean chit to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Finance Minister P Chidambaram in the 2G spectrum scam, but has blamed the then prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee for causing losses to the national exchequer.
This along with JPC chairman PC Chacko’s defence of the committee’s conclusion has enraged the Opposition.
The BJP has totally rejected the report and has called upon other parties to do so saying it would have to rethink about supporting the several bills for which the government was seeking its cooperation.
The allegation of the interference by the Law Ministry in the CBI report on allocation of coal block has also given a much fuel to the Opposition parties to attack the Government.
The Opposition would be raising these two issues on the very first day of the resumed session.
Meanwhile, the Government is all ready to introduce some crucial bills in the second half of the Budget session. Though it has already obtained the Opposition BJP’s concurrence over the Land Acquisition, Rehabilitation and Resettlement Bill with some changes based on the latter’s suggestions, it has not been able to get any clear cut assurance from the Opposition party over support for the Bills related to economic reforms– the Insurance and pensions bill for example.
The passing of the insurance bill providing for raising the FDI limit in the sector from 26 to 49 per cent was important as it was closely linked with the India-EU Free Trade and Investment agreement negotiations for which had reached final stages, and the EU members were raising their pitch for further opening of the insurance sector in return for Indian goods and services access to their market.
The Left and the DMK have certain reservations over the Land Acquisition Bill, and in the absence of support from these parties, the Government will have to approach the SP and the BSP, the two principal parties from Uttar Pradesh, but these two have taken an diametrically opposed stand on the Bill for quota in promotion to SC and ST, and reconciling their demands was almost impossible for the Government.
The incident of rape this week and the handling of the case by the police, which has again shocked the country, would again be a major issue in Parliament. The first half of the Budget session had witnessed a strong sense of the outrage against the gangrape of a 23-year-old girl on December 16 last, and her subsequent death. A new law was passed by Parliament to provide for strict punishment upto death for rape.
The first half of the Budget session had been stormy scenes over other issues like that of Sri Lankan Tamils and also Steel Minister Beni Prasad Verma’s remarks against SP Chief Mulayam Singh Yadav.
In the second half of the Budget session, the Government has also to get the money bill passed by it. With almost all the Opposition parties antagonised getting the money bill, leave aside other bills will not be an easy task for the government. (AGENCIES)
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