Adani case, Manipur may take centre stage in Parliament's winter session

Govt lists banking law Bill for Lok Sabha discussions on Day 1

The winter session of Parliament is set to begin on a confrontational note on Monday, with the Opposition INDIA bloc calling for discussions on a range of pressing issues, including US Securities and Exchange Commission’s charges against Gautam Adani, and seven others in a bribery and fraud case, the fresh wave of violence in Manipur, and the air pollution crisis in Delhi. The Opposition will also push for the restoration of statehood for Jammu and Kashmir.

 

At an all-party meeting in the national capital on Sunday, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju stated that the issues to be addressed during the session will be determined by the respective business advisory committees of both Houses, in consultation with their respective chairs.

 

The session begins in the wake of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) securing significant victories in Haryana in October and Maharashtra, where the party claimed an emphatic win on Sunday. After an underwhelming performance in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls where it fell short of the majority mark, the BJP has turned in its best Assembly election performances in Haryana and Maharashtra.

 

Meanwhile, the Opposition INDIA bloc managed to secure victories in Jammu and Kashmir and Jharkhand. However, the Congress, which leads the bloc, faced a morale setback following its losses in Haryana and Maharashtra, despite its improved performance in the Lok Sabha elections.

 

The party is expected to put the government under pressure on the Adani issue, with its MPs planning protests within the Parliament complex for joint parliamentary committee (JPC) probe and its youth wing, the Indian Youth Congress, organising demonstrations outside Parliament. INDIA bloc leaders are set to meet at the office of Rajya Sabha Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday morning to strategise for the first day of the session.

 

The all-party meeting on Sunday saw the participation of 42 leaders from 30 parties and was chaired by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. Following the meeting, Congress leader Pramod Tiwari announced that the Opposition had called for discussions on the Adani bribery allegations, the violence in Manipur, Delhi’s air pollution, and recent train accidents during the session.

 

The winter session, slated to conclude on December 20, will have 19 sittings. The government has tabled five new Bills for introduction, as well as 11 pending Bills for discussion and passage. Among the latter, the contentious Waqf (Amendment) Bill, introduced in the Budget Session in August, may be brought to a vote after the joint committee submits its report. Although not officially listed, government sources suggest a potential introduction of a Bill on “one nation, one election” during the session, following the Union Cabinet’s approval in September of the report by the committee headed by former President Ram Nath Kovind on simultaneous elections.

 

For Monday, the government has listed the pending Banking Laws (Amendment) Bill for discussion in the Lok Sabha. This Bill seeks to amend various banking laws, including provisions to extend the tenure of directors of co-operative banks and enhance the settlement of unclaimed amounts. 

Winter session 

Date of session: November 25 to December 20

  19: Number of sittings slated for the session

5: New Bills to be introduced 

> Merchant Shipping Bill

> Coastal Shipping Bill

> Indian Ports Bill

> Punjab Courts (Amendment) Bill

> Rashtriya Sahakari Vishwavidyalaya Bill

 

11: Pending Bills listed 

> Key pending Bills include the Waqf (Amendment) Bill, with the joint committee of Parliament scheduled to submit its report during the session

> INDIA bloc to demand a JPC probe into the bribery charges against the Adani group, and a discussion on the violence in Manipur