Winter session of Parliament to begin tomorrow

The winter session of Parliament beginning tomorrow is expected to see the Opposition take the Government to task on a variety of issues, including rising prices, the increase in Maoist violence, the plight of farmers in the wake of the drought in many parts of the country this year and India's relations with Pakistan and China.

The session, that is scheduled to end of December 21, will have 23 sittings over 33 days, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal told reporters.

He said the session would be devoted mainly to essential Government legislative and other business, including financial business.

The financial business will include Supplementary Demands for Grants for 2009-10 in respect of the Railway and the General Budgets as well as the State Budget of Jharkhand, which is under President's Rule at present.

Mr Bansal had held a meeting with Secretaries and other senior offices of various ministries and departments yesterday to finalise the Government business for the session.

Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar had met leaders of various parties last week and got an assurance from them about their support for the smooth functioning of the House.

The Opposition is also likely to raise the question of the multi-crore scam allegedly involving former Jharkhand Chief Minister Madhu Koda, given that the issue will come in handy at a time when the state is due to go for elections in five phases from November 25.

Similarly, the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) can be expected to raise the issue of the alleged scam in spectrum allocation involving Communications Minister A Raja of its rival Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK).

Several parties can also be expected to raise the recent Hindi-Marathi controversy involving the Mahrashtra Navnirman Sena in Maharashtra.

The ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA) will be facing the session with a fair amount of confidence after its impressive performance in the recent assembly elections in Maharashtra, Haryana and Arunachal Pradesh. The main Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Left parties have, on the other hand, fared rather badly in the recent elections, including the bye-elections in West Bengal, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh and some other states.

Ahead of the session, Congress President Sonia Gandhi had a meeting here yesterday with some of her senior colleagues on the party's strategy to face the Opposition onslaught.

Those who attended the meeting included Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Defence Minister A K Antony and her Political Secretary Ahmed Patel.

The legislative and financial items identified by the Government for being taken up during the session--the third of the 15th Lok Sabha and the 218th session of the Rajya Sabha--include the Rubber (Amendment) Bill, the National Green Tribunal Bill, the National Commission for Minorities Educational Institutions (Amendment) Bill, the Workmen's Compensation (Amendment) Bill and the Land Ports Authority of India Bill, allof which are pending in the Lok Sabha.

Bills pending in the Rajya Sabha include the Seeds Bill, the Pesticides Management Bill, the Legal Metrology Bill, the National Commission for Heritage Sites Bill, the Labour Laws (Exemption from Furnishing Returns and Maintaining Registers by Certain Establishments) Amendments and Miscellaneous Provisions Bill, the Representation of the People (Second Amendment) Bill, the Constitution (108th Amendment) Bill and the Communal Violence (Prevention, Control and Rehabilitation of Victims) Bill.

NNN