Budget session of Parliament begins today: What to expect

New Delhi, Jan 31: The Budget Session of Parliament is set to begin today with the address of the president to both the Houses, and conclude on April 8, followed by the Economic Survey. The Union Budget will be presented on February 1.

The first part of the session would conclude on February 11.

After a month-long recess, the part two of the session would begin from March 14 and conclude on April 8, the sources said. The recess allows department-related parliamentary committees to examine budgetary allocations made to their respective ministries.

During part one of the session, campaigning for phase one of the Uttar Pradesh assembly elections would be in full swing for which votes will be cast on February 10.

When the two Houses meet after recess on March 14, the results of assembly polls in Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Goa, Punjab and Manipur would be out.

The counting is on March 10 for all the five states.

Pegasus issue likely to be raised

The Pegasus issue is likely to cast its shadow on the budget session of Parliament starting Monday, with the opposition parties set to raise the pitch in both houses.

Leader of the Congress party in the Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury demanded that a privilege motion be moved against Minister for Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw for allegedly misleading the lower house of Parliament on the Pegasus issue.

The Monsoon session of 2020 was the first full session held under Covid protocol with the Rajya Sabha meeting in the first half of the day and the Lok Sabha during the second half. The same was followed for the first part of the Budget Session during 2021.

For the second part of Budget Session and Monsoon and winter sessions last year, the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha reverted to normal timings, but with members sitting in the chambers and galleries of respective Houses to ensure distancing.