'Special session' of Parliament from September 18-22: Pralhad Joshi
In a major development, the central government has called for a "special" session of Parliament from September 18 to 22. The announcement was made by Parliamentary Affairs Minister and top Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Pralhad Joshi on Thursday. However, the minister did not mention the reason behind the surprise session.
Check out Joshi's announcement on X
Recalling monsoon session of Parliament
It is worth noting that this development comes right after the recently concluded Monsoon Session of Parliament between July 20 and August 11. The session saw several acrimonious exchanges between the saffron brigade-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and the newly-formed Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc over multiple issues, including the ongoing ethnic violence in Manipur.
Political reaction to special Parliament session
Reacting to Joshi's announcement over the special Parliament session, Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) leader Arvind Sawant lashed out at the BJP-led Centre. "In the history of Parliament, no session has taken place during a festival," he stated. "During the days the Ganpati festival is celebrated, they have kept the sessions. This is their Hindutva," Sawant was quoted as saying by ANI.
You can watch Sawant's reaction here
INDIA parties have rattled PM Modi: Saket Gokhale
Meanwhile, Trinamool Congress (TMC) National Spokesperson and Rajya Sabha MP Saket Gokhale said, "INDIA parties have rattled PM (Narendra) Modi so much that he's now pulling off '8:00pm speech to the nation' stunts on Parliament." Reportedly, during the monsoon session, 17 sittings were held, totaling 44 hours and 13 minutes. At least 20 bills were introduced, and the Lok Sabha passed 22 draft legislations.
How is a session convened
The power to convene a parliamentary session lies with the government. The Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs makes this decision, which is then formalized by the president, who then summons the MPs to a session. Notably, India does not have a set parliamentary calendar. Parliament traditionally meets three times a year: Budget Session (February-May), Monsoon Session (July-August), and Winter Session (November-December).
