PM appeals for 'peaceful' Budget Session

New Delhi: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has appealed to the Opposition to let both Houses of Parliament function peacefully, as the Budget session begins on Monday.

Singh has assured the Opposition that the government is ready to discuss all issues. (Watch)

The crucial session will begin President Pratibha Patil's address to a joint session of both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha.

The session will see the Railway Budget on February 24, the Economic Survey on February 25 and the General Budget on February 26.

The opening speech by the President is an important part of Parliament proceedings. And with the absence of a Common Minimum Programme (CMP), it has become more important for the Manmohan Singh government as its agenda is spelt out in this annual address.
While the Government will hope to showcase its achievements so far, the Opposition will attempt to corner it on many issues.

The UPA government recognizes that it is at a disadvantage over the price rise issue. Manmohan Singh reiterated on Monday what his Parliamentary Affairs Minister P K Bansal said on the weekend: "We will not stand on prestige, we are ready to discuss instead of the House being disrupted."

But the main Opposition, the NDA, is finalising its battle strategy in Parliament. It will go for the Government's jugular over the price crisis and demand a vote. And it will do that despite the government's readiness for a discussion, even before taking up the customary motion of thanks to the President.

Some of the other issues the Opposition plans to raise apart from rising inflation and spiralling prices of food commodities, are:

• Terrorist and Naxal violence in the country
• Resumption of Indo-Pak Foreign Secretary-level talks
• The increase in urea based fertiliser prices and decontrol of non-urea based fertilizers.

"When we took those stern measures, the same people who are in government today roundly condemned and criticised us and took out morchas on the streets so they may have to face the same music. But the point is - whether it is the Parikh Report, food subsidy, fertiliser subsidies or other wasteful expenditure, the government has shown no political will to tackle this wasteful expenditure," said senior BJP leader Yashwast Sinha.