Ahead of the Lok Sabha’s sine die adjournment, House Speaker Om Birla said the Lok Sabha passed 13 Bills during Budget Session.
“During the Lok Sabha proceedings, 12 Bills were reinstated and 13 Bills were passed,” he said.
One key Bill was the Criminal Procedure (Identification) Bill which empowers police to obtain physical and biological samples of convicts and those accused of crimes. Several opposition parties slammed the Bill as “unconstitutional” and “draconian” and claimed it could be misused.
Another important Bill Delhi Municipal Corporation (Amendment) Bill was also passed amid criticisms. Other Bills are The Finance Bill, The Weapons of Mass Destruction, and their Delivery Systems (Prohibition of Unlawful Activities) Amendment Bill.
The Rajya Sabha passed 11 bills including six appropriation bills and Finance Bills that were returned.
The Budget Session had begun on January 31 with the address of President Ram Nath Kovind to the joint sitting of both the Houses. The first part of the Budget Session concluded on February 11 when Parliament went into recess to examine the budget papers. The session resumed on March 14 and concluded on Thursday, a day ahead of schedule after the completion of the budgetary process.
Budget Session had a total of 27 sittings for a total of 177 hours and 50 minutes.
General Debate was held for 15 hours and 35 minutes on between February 7 and 10. Of this duration, the demand for grants for Railways was discussed for almost 13 hours; Road, Transport & Highways for over 11 hours; Civil Aviation for almost 8 hours and Ministry of Commerce for 6 hours and 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, Congress MPs Manickam Tagore and TN Prathapan hit out at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for attending the Budget Session of Parliament for only two of 17 days.
