Will the Budget Session Schedule of Bengal Assembly Change Due to CM Banerjee’s Supreme Court Hearing?
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Kolkata, Feb 5 (NationPress) The timing of the upcoming Budget Session in the Assembly may be altered to accommodate West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s visit to New Delhi on February 9. She is set to participate in a significant hearing regarding the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in the state before a three-judge Bench of the Supreme Court on that day.
Originally, February 9 was planned as the concluding date for the Budget Session. However, a preliminary decision has been made to potentially conclude the session on February 7, which falls on a Saturday.
Typically, Assembly sessions do not occur on Saturdays, except for rare instances. “Given the exceptional nature of this situation, particularly due to the Chief Minister’s participation in the Supreme Court hearing, the last day of the Budget Session might indeed be February 7,” noted a member of the Trinamool Congress legislative team.
In a related note, Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had appeared in the apex court on Wednesday, where she personally argued the case.
The West Bengal Minister of State for Finance (independent charge), Chandrima Bhattacharya, will present the interim budget (vote on accounts) in the Assembly at 2:30 p.m. on Thursday.
During this ongoing Budget Session, the Treasury Bench is anticipated to introduce two significant motions in the Assembly.
The first motion will address the ongoing SIR in West Bengal, while the second motion will condemn the actions of central investigation agencies, such as the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED), within the state.
This second motion carries great importance considering the recent controversies surrounding the ED’s simultaneous raid at the Indian Political Action Committee's (I-PAC) office in Salt Lake and the residence of I-PAC’s co-founder, Pratik Jain, located on Loudon Street in central Kolkata.
While these raids were in progress, Mamata Banerjee, along with senior bureaucrats and police officials, visited both sites and left with numerous files and electronic documents.
Currently, this matter awaits a hearing in the Supreme Court.