No debate, Lok Sabha passes Budget in 12 minutes

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, March 23

Amid continued adjournments and without any debate, the Lok Sabha on Thursday approved the Union Budget envisaging an expenditure of around Rs 45 lakh crore for financial year 2023-24. Prime Minister Narendra Modi was present during the passage of Budget.

The Lok Sabha took up the Demands for Grants and Appropriation Bills after two adjournments as the ruling and Opposition MPs clashed in the House over the Adani “stock manipulation” issue and demand for an apology by Congress MP Rahul Gandhi over “democracy under threat” remark. After two failed attempts, it took 12 minutes to complete the formalities when the House reassembled at 6 pm with Speaker Om Birla putting the Opposition’s amendments to vote, which was rejected by voice vote.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman then moved the demands for grants for 2023-24 and relevant Appropriation Bills for discussion and voting. The Speaker applied the guillotine and put the demands for grants of all ministries for voting. The demands were passed even as Opposition MPs entered the Well of the House shouting slogans. This meant that the House could not even discuss the demands for grants of even the identified ministries — Railway, Rural Development, Health and Family Welfare, Panchayati Raj, Tribal Affairs and Tourism and Culture.

With the passing of Demands for Grants and Appropriation Bills, only one formality—The Finance Bill, 2023—remains. The Bill containing tax tweaks proposed by Sitharaman while tabling the Budget on February 1 will most likely be taken up by the Lok Sabha on Friday.

The passed Bills will now be sent to the Rajya Sabha for its approval, which, as per rules, can only discuss but not modify these. The Rajya Sabha was adjourned without transaction of any business after a third all-party meeting called by House chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar ended inconclusively. Though the Congress-led Opposition attended Dhankhar’s meeting, no truce was reached.

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