CCPA to decide whether or not to extend Budget session of Parliament

New Delhi: With the government running short of time to pass some key bills, a meeting of Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs will on Wednesday take a call on whether to extend the first half of the budget session for a few more days or prorogue it on 20 March.

Sources said that government is mulling extending the budget session for a few more days in the first half, which otherwise comes to a close on 20 March, to facilitate the passage of bills replacing ordinances on land acquisition, mines and minerals and coal.

All the three bills have been passed by Lok Sabha and two of them one on mines and minerals and coal were referred to the Select Committee of Rajya Sabha, which adopted the reports.

If the government accepts the recommendations of the select committees and make changes in the two bills, they will have to be sent to Lok Sabha again for passage before they are brought before the Rajya Sabha.

Government is hopeful that it will also be able to arrive at some sort of consensus on the land bill even as opposition protests on it has grown only louder.

These things will require time because only three days remain for the first half of the budget session to end as per the schedule. Out of this, Friday is for private members' day.

Government believes that if the session was extended for a few more days, it could have the bills passed both in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. The Ordinances have to be converted into bills before April 5 otherwise they will lapse.

There is another view that the government should prorogue the budget session on March 20 doing away with the recess and convene a fresh session in April or May to complete the unfinished task after repromulgating the ordinances on land, coal and mines and mineral.

While an ordinance has a life of six months, it has to be approved by Parliament within six weeks of the commencement of the session which follows its promulgation. An ordinance cannot be re-promulgated while Parliament is in session.

CCPA will take a final view on whether to go for the either of the two options. Under Article 85(2) of the Constitution, the President is vested with the power to prorogue (end a session) both Houses of Parliament.

The second half of the budget session otherwise begins on April 20 after a month-long recess and continues till 8 May.

(With inputs from PTI)