The Winter Session of Parliament is set to begin on Monday, and will last till December 13. As many as 27 new bills are likely to be introduced in this session, The Indian Express reported.
Of the bills, the government will table the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Bill. The bill seeks to amend a 1955 law to grant citizenship to persecuted Hindus, Buddhists, Sikhs, Jains, Parsis and Christians from the Muslim-majority nations of Bangladesh, Afghanistan and Pakistan if they have lived in India for six years. The bill was passed in the previous Lok Sabha but not the Rajya Sabha, and has now lapsed.
There had been protests in Assam on November 15 against the passage of the bill. The All Assam Students Union asserted that the legislation will not be accepted by people of the state at any cost.
Meanwhile, opposition parties have criticised the bill on the ground that it excludes Muslims from its ambit.
Other bills, which will be introduced in Parliament in the Winter Session, include one to ban electronic cigarettes, a Personal Data Protection bill and another amending the Income Tax Act to benefit domestic companies. Other new bills seek to amend the Industrial Relations Code to amalgamate three Acts, including the Trade Unions Act, the Companies Act to decriminalise certain offences, and the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code.
The Healthcare Service Personnel and Clinical Establishments Bill is also likely to be introduced in this session. It seeks to protect doctors from violence by patients, NDTV reports. There have been clashes between doctors and patients in parts of the country in recent months, leading to injuries.
A total of 10 bills are also pending in the Rajya Sabha.
However, the Opposition parties, led by the Congress, are likely to grill the government over matters such as the economic slowdown, farm distress and unemployment and the Centre’s decision to withhold a survey on consumer expenditure. The survey showed that the monthly per capita consumption expenditure had declined for the first time in 2017-’18 since the 1970s.
Rajya Sabha Chairperson Venkaiah Naidu said on Sunday that the present session of the Rajya Sabha, the 250th, will include a discussion on the “Role of the Rajya Sabha in Indian Polity”. Naidu also urged all MPs of the Upper House to be present every day.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!