With no substantive politically-sensitive bill now on the UPA government’s agenda and the food security ordinance already promulgated, it appears that the government is in no hurry to convene the Monsoon Session of Parliament. Sources say the session may now begin only after August 15, when Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, in his Independence Day speech from the Red Fort (his last address before the general election), is likely to focus on his government’s resolve to make India a “hunger-free country”.
A source said: “While no final decision has been taken on convening the Monsoon Session, there is no hurry among government managers. A section in the government feels the session could even start in early September.”
The Monsoon Session usually begins in the third week of July and is spread over a month. The earlier plan to convene a special session in early July was given up after the Cabinet decided to promulgate an ordinance on the food security measure. A section of the government too had earlier pitched for a special session to pass the Food Security Bill that was seen as a “game-changer” for the Congress in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls.
The government plans to bring forward several key bills — including the Land Acquisition Bill, Insurance Bill, Pensions Bill, Companies Bill and Direct Taxes Code Bill — that will give the sluggish economy a boost. “But these don’t carry much political weight, particularly when we are in an election year”, a source said.
The PM’s Independence Day speech, he added, will be “fully loaded” with the UPA’s achievements, including “how the Opposition thwarted attempts to enact the food security law and how his hands were tied to promulgate the ordinance”.
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