No new bills lined up, Modi govt may decide to curtail ongoing session

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to take a call on the government’s agenda for the rest of Parliament session after the Budget has been passed.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to take a call on the government’s agenda for the rest of Parliament session after the Budget has been passed.

The parliamentary affairs ministry had announced a tentative list of 21 bills to be discussed and passed during the budget session, but with 16 days to go before the session ends, almost no new bills have been cleared by the cabinet.

The PM is expected to discuss the situation in the cabinet meeting and decide which bills the government should take up. According to sources, the government is even considering an early closure of the session if ministries fail to come up with concrete business.

The government had announced its keenness to pass long-pending bills of the UPA government, including key bills like the amendment to prevention of corruption Act, amendment to the whistle blowers protection act and a bill to prevent bribery of foreign public officials.

“Almost every ministry wants to make changes in the pending bills to ensure the NDA’s mark, but the problem is that most of them have not sent the amended bills to the cabinet,” said a senior official.

Sources added that parliamentary affairs minister Venkaiah Naidu held a meeting with Modi on Tuesday to discuss the situation.

The government will be busy with passing the finance bill and the general budget until July 30. The challenge now is to fill up the government’s agenda for the remaining period until August 14.