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Government sources have indicated that the Waqf Amendment Bill, which was recently cleared by the cabinet after incorporating the 14 amendments suggested by the JPC, is likely to be introduced in the Lok Sabha on April 1
The ongoing second session of Parliament began on March 10 and will go on till April 4. (PTI)
The second half of Parliament’s Budget Session is expected to see fireworks in both Houses ahead of adjournment on April 4.
After his reply to the functioning of the railways ministry on Monday in the Rajya Sabha — where proceedings went on till 11pm — Union railways minister Ashwini Vaishnaw is all set to reply in the Lok Sabha on Tuesday on the demand for grants. On Tuesday afternoon, the Lok Sabha will also hold discussions on the demand for grants for the Jal Shakti ministry, for which a time period of six hours has been allocated. Union minister for Jal Shakti CR Patil is expected to reply on Tuesday evening.
Meanwhile, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman will speak in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday on the debate for excess demand for grants and on Manipur’s budget. The Rajya Sabha will then begin discussion on the functioning of the ministry of health and family welfare.
The upcoming days will be important in the Rajya Sabha as discussion on the functioning of the ministry of home affairs will begin on March 20, and on March 21, Union home minister Amit Shah will reply to the debate in the Upper House.
On March 21, the Lok Sabha will also take up ‘guillotine’, which essentially means grouping up of the demand for grants for various Union ministries as a grand total and getting it passed in the House. Once that is done next week on March 24 and 25, the Lower House will also discuss and pass the finance bill which will then be brought to the Rajya Sabha for its discussion and passage. Even if it is not passed in the Rajya Sabha, it is deemed to be passed in the next 15 days since it is a money bill.
Many opposition MPs had joined the protest in the national capital over the Waqf Amendment Bill, anticipating that the government would bring it in this session.
Government sources have indicated that the Bill, which was recently cleared by the cabinet after incorporating the 14 amendments that the joint parliamentary committee suggested, is likely to be introduced in the Lok Sabha on April 1.
The government has expressed its intent to pass the legislation and make it a law. With numbers in both Houses stacked in their favour, the BJP-led NDA, which has also managed to bring key allies TDP and JDU on board, is confident of passing the bill.
Another important legislation that the government is keen on getting passed in the last week of the ongoing session is the immigration bill which seeks to bring a policy to identify and punish illegal migrants and those staying in India with fake documents.
Towards the last week, the government is also likely to seek approval from Parliament for the imposition of President’s Rule in Manipur. During the brief discussion on the proclamation of the President’s Rule, Shah is expected to put forth the facts before Parliament.
On April 1, the term of the ongoing JPC for ‘One Nation, One Election’ also comes to an end and the chairman is likely to seek approval of the Lok Sabha Speaker for an extension for the next three months. The committee, which was formed in the last Winter Session of Parliament, has had five meetings since being formed and would need the Parliament’s approval to get an extension for further scrutiny of the bill.
The ongoing second session of Parliament began on March 10 and will go on till April 4. During this session, the government would like to pass the budget which will allow it to withdraw money from the consolidated funds of India for allocation to various ministries.
