Govt to push insurance, coal Bills

KV Prasad

Tribune News Service

NEW DELHI, DECEMBER 13

With the Winter Session of Parliament entering its penultimate week on Monday, the BJP-led NDA government wants to go all out to push important legislation, including the much-awaited Bill signaling economic reforms – raising the FDI in insurance sector to 49 per cent.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, who is emerging as the key Minister in taking forward the government agenda, has his hands full with the insurance Bill listed for consideration and passage in the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday, a day after he would have brought up the appropriations Bill seeking additional funds.

Passage of the insurance amendment Bill is expected to be smooth considering the opposition Congress having stated its support with a rider that provided the government accepts its suggestions.

During the Budget Session, the Congress-led Opposition, which enjoys numerical superiority in the Rajya Sabha, forced the government to refer the Bill to a select panel for scrutiny. The panel presented its report last week with representatives of four parties — the CPM, JD-U, SP and the TMC — submitting notes of dissent.

The collective strength of the four parties is 48 and the CPI with two is expected to vote with them. The RJD and JD-S, now part of the re-uniting Janata Parivar, have one member each which effectively pushes the number of the group to 52.

The government would like to have a new insurance law in place and showcase its commitment to re-energise the reforms process in the country ahead of scheduled visit of US president Barack Obama.

Though the parliamentary managers may not have to stretch for the passage of the Bill, the woes of the BJP-led government can compound with TMC chief Mamata Banerjee announcing today her party MPs will protest in Parliament Centre’s “political vendetta” in arresting West Bengal Minister Madan Mitra.

The Finance Minister is scheduled to move yet another reform Bill to amend the Companies Act in the Lok Sabha while Minister Piyush Goel would seek to get nod from Parliament for the Coal Bill passed by the Lok Sabha on Friday. The Bill, which replaces an ordinance, clears the passage for fresh auction of over 200 coal blocks de-allocated by the Supreme Court.

In the Rajya Sabha, the Business Advisory Committee also allocated time for consideration of the Anti-Hijacking (Amendment) Bill, 2010, and the Public Premises Bill, 2014, and to take up two motions relating to annulment and modification of the Central Government’s notification of December 2, seeking to increase the Basic Excise Duty on petrol and diesel, which will once again test the strength of the government.

Despite disruptions, the current session is headed for a record performance in transaction of legislative business. The Lok Sabha has already passed 13 Bills in the first three weeks and the Rajya Sabha cleared nine of them.