PARLIAMENT DIARY
WILL THE LS RESORT TO GUILLOTINE?
It’s now official that the Parliament Budget session is being curtailed prematurely. On Tuesday, MPs suddenly find a supplementary business list of the Lok Sabha where it was mentioned that at 5 pm, there would be voting for outstanding demands for grants of the year 2018- 19 which is known in parliamentary language as “guillotine”. The demands for grants of the ministry could not be taken up for discussion. They are generally put together and passed in one go. However, demands for grants could not be taken up for discussion this time due to the ongoing stalemate between the Treasury and Opposition benches.
The Central government had advised the office of the Speaker to pass all the demands for grants in one go without discussion, but the Speaker adjourned the House for the whole day.
Meanwhile, Opposition parties went to the Speaker Sumitra Mahajan urging her not to take up guillotine on Tuesday. On the other hand, the government told the Speaker that it would be better to pass all the demands for grant as guillotine as the House was not functioning properly. It is to be seen now whether the House takes up guillotine on Wednesday.