A new session of Parliament is set to begin on Monday, September 18, 2023. With Vice President and Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar hoisting the national flag at the new Parliament building on Sunday morning, the development is being seen as a precursor to Parliament shifting to its new home during the session.
The Government is holding an all-party meeting later in the day to brief floor leaders of different parties and hear their views ahead of the session.
What’s on agenda?
The main standout feature on the listed agenda is a special discussion on Parliament’s journey of 75 years starting from the “Samvidhan Sabha” (Constituent Assembly).
The Government has also listed the bill on the appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner and other election commissioners to be taken up for consideration and passage during the session. The bill was introduced in Rajya Sabha during the last Monsoon session and has drawn protests from the opposition as it seeks to put service conditions of the Chief Election Commissioner and two election commissioners on par with the cabinet secretary and not a Supreme Court judge, as is the case now.
The successful G20 Summit in the national capital under India’s presidency has added to Modi’s appeal and is set to be a major talking point of the treasury benches during the session.
Besides the discussion on “Parliamentary Journey of 75 years starting from Samvidhan Sabha – Achievements, Experiences, Memories and Learnings‘” scheduled for September 18, the other listed business for Lok Sabha includes ‘The Advocates (Amendment) Bill, 2023’ and ‘The Press and Registration of Periodicals Bill, 2023’, already passed by Rajya Sabha on 3 August 2023.
Besides, ‘The Post Office Bill, 2023’ has also been listed in the Lok Sabha business, according to an official bulletin. The bill was earlier introduced in Rajya Sabha on 10 August 2023.
The list of business is tentative and more items can be added.
While announcing the session, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi had described it as “special session”. But the government had later made it clear that it was a regular session, 13th session of the present Lok Sabha and 261st session of Rajya Sabha.
Various departments of parliamentary staff are all set to don new uniforms in a signal from the government that the shift to the new building is likely to be marked with a fresh start in more ways than one.