Mukherjee hopes 'Budget Session' of Parliament will function smoothly

Chennai, Jan 21 (ANI): Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Sunday expressing confidence that the 'Budget Session' of Parliament will function smoothly, said that he would soon hold parleys with the opposition parties over the issue.

"I will have discussions with the opposition party. Earlier Speaker called two meetings. In those two meetings, it was decided that I should also have discussions with the various opposition parties," said Mukherjee on the sidelines of the 24th All India Builders Convention here.

"I do hope it would be possible for us to find out a solution. So that the budget session can be, business can be transacted in the budget session, smoothly," he added.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) created a logjam during the Winter Session of Parliament over the demand for setting up of a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into 2G-spectrum scam.

Former Telecom Minister A. Raja was forced to resign last month after a report of the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) faulted him for undervaluing spectrum to favour companies who were largely ineligible for 2G spectrum, and added that the government had probably lost Rs.1.76 lakh crore in estimated revenue.

The Budget Session of Parliament will begin on February 21.

The General Budget is to be presented in the Lok Sabha on February 28.

The decision to recommend the date for the convening of the Budget Session to President Pratibha Devisingh Patil was taken at a meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs (CCPA) in New Delhi on Thursday, which was chaired by Pranab Mukherjee. (ANI)