The Winter Session of Parliament will be held from December 7 to 29, Union minister Pralhad Joshi said on Friday.

The session will comprise 17 sittings spread over 23 days, the Minister for Parliamentary Affairs said on Twitter.

“...Looking forward to discussions on Legislative Business and other items during the session,” Joshi said. “Looking forward for constructive debate.”

What to expect in the House

On September 29, the Centre told the Supreme Court that a revised Personal Data Protection Bill will be introduced in the Winter Session. An earlier version of the Bill was withdrawn on August 3 after the Joint Committee of Parliament had recommended 81 changes and 12 “major recommendations” to it.

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The old version of the Bill proposed restrictions on the use of personal information of people without their explicit consent. The subjects covered by the proposed law included consent, personal data, exemptions that can be granted, storage restrictions for personal data and individual rights.

On October 31, Attorney General R Venkataramani also told the Supreme Court that the Centre may look into the sedition law during the Winter Session.

Section 124A of the Indian Penal Code, which deals with sedition, states that whoever “brings or attempts to bring into hatred or contempt, or excites or attempts to excite disaffection towards the government established by law in India” can be held to have committed the offence of sedition.

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On May 11, the Supreme Court had put the sedition law in abeyance and requested state governments and the Centre to not file any new cases under the rule till it is re-examined.

The Congress has said that party MPs Rahul Gandhi, Jairam Ramesh, KC Venugopal and Digvijaya Singh are unlikely to attend the session as they are taking part in the Bharat Jodo Yatra.

The Monsoon Session of Parliament was held from July 18 to August 8, and it ended four days ahead of schedule. Opposition leaders had held protests seeking a discussion on topics such as price rise, unemployment, the Goods and Services Tax hike on essential items, and the Enforcement Directorate’s action against those critical of the government.