Budget session from Friday

The Budget session of Parliament beginning on Friday in the shadow of Assembly polls in three states is expected to generate a lot of heat and dust and the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance coalition is likely to come under severe pressure from the Left allies and attack from the BJP-led opposition.

The three-month long session is expected to be tough for the Manmohan Singh Government in the backdrop of the BJP-led NDA giving ample hints to put the coalition in the dock on a variety of issues including the dismissal of Goa government and the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad bus service.

And what may worry the government the most would be the strident stance of the Left parties on a host of economic issues with virtually daily reminders that the support of the 61-member Left formation is crucial for UPA's survival.

The shape of things to come in Bihar and Jharkhand after the poll verdict on February 27 is also expected to have a bearing on the health of the UPA coalition which would be completing one year in office in May.

A redeeming feature for the Prime Minister was the recent Supreme Court judgement on the issue of 'tainted' ministers, a matter which had rocked Parliament in the Monsoon session last year.

The session, scheduled to conclude on May 13, may witness a real tightrope walk for Finance Minister P Chidambaram who will present his Budget for 2005-06 on Feb. 28 as he would have to keep the restive Left in good humour while ensuring at the same time that the economic reforms were carried forward.

Incidentally, the Budget presentation is a day after the election results while the Economic Survey for 2004-05 is scheduled to be tabled on the opening day after President A P J Abdul Kalam's address to the joint sitting of both the Houses.

The Railway Budget will be presented on February 26 by Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav.

Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee held separate dinner meetings with the BJP and Congress leaders ahead of the session to ensure smooth running of Parliament. Rajya Sabha Chairman Bhairon Singh Shekhawat also plans to have greater coordination with both sides through regular meetings.

The Patents Ordinance promulgated just after the last session had led to a controversy with the Left parties not too pleased in the matter. There has been a long wishlist of the Left parties on a number of economic issues.

BJP has made it clear that it would adopt an 'aggressive posture' if it was not allowed to raise issues which it felt were of national importance.

The main opposition party proposes to focus on the Goa issue as it believed that what was witnessed in Panaji on February 2 was 'murder of democracy.'

The party-led NDA is also expected to make a scathing attack on the manner in which the government has agreed to start the Srinagar-Muzaffarabad Bus service as it felt that allowing travel to Pakistani citizens in India without proper documents was fraught with dangerous consequences.

The BJP would also raise the issue of action taken against the Shankaracharyas of Kanchi by the Tamil Nadu government.

Opposition parties also plan to raise the issue of price rise of essential commodities and the relief provided to Tsunami-hit people.

Mayawati-led BSP is likely to raise the issue of law and order in Uttar Pradesh. The party has been demanding dismissal of the Mulayam Singh Yadav government in the wake of murder of its MLA Raju Pal in Allahabad recently.

Incidentally both BSP and SP are outside supporters of the UPA government but Congress has not been happy over the state of affairs in Uttar Pradesh.

TDP is up in arms against the Congress in Andhra Pradesh following the killing of party MLA Paritala Ravi in broad daylight.

Congress could seek to turn the tables on the BJP by focussing on reports about the CD of former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee a day before the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya.