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15th Lok Sabha convenes
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New Delhi, June 01: The new Lok Sabha, with a more dominant Congress heading a coalition having a comfortable majority with its allies, opens its first session on Monday, whose highlight would be the election of the Speaker and unfolding of UPA government`s plan of action.
The first two days of the 15th Lok Sabha has been kept for newly elected members to take oath followed by election of the Speaker on June 3.
While initial reports spoke of the possibility of senior Congress member V Kishore Chandra Deo as the most likely choice for the Speaker`s post, Union Minister and Congress Dalit face has emerged the dark horse for the post.
President Pratibha Patil would address the joint sitting of both Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha on June four which would chart out the road map of the second term of the Manmohan Singh government which came to power with renewed mandate as Congress alone secured 206 seats. The party had 145 seats in the previous House.
With pre-poll allies, the UPA was almost near the majority mark of 272 and back by post-poll partners, the coalition strength has gone up to 322.
Meanwhile, a humbled Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has said that it will play the role of a "constructive opposition."
The session will begin with the formal swearing in of the 543 newly elected MPs. Two days have been earmarked for the procedure that will be followed by the election of the Lok Sabha Speaker Wednesday and President Pratibha Patil`s address to a joint session of Parliament Thursday.
"We will sit in the opposition and play the role of a constructive opposition," party vice-president Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi told reporters, just ahead of an evening meeting of the party`s MPs to elect senior leader LK Advani as the opposition leader and chalk out the strategy for the Parliament session.
"Let the government do the good work as it promised, we will sit in the opposition," BJP veteran M Venkaiah Naidu also told a TV news channel.
Meira Kumar, 64, the Water Resources Minister in the new government, is set to be the Congress choice for the post of the Lok Sabha Speaker, party sources said.
If elected, Meira Kumar, a Dalit and daughter of the late Jagjivan Ram, will be the first woman to preside over the Lower House of Parliament.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh`s full Cabinet met Saturday and finalised the president`s address to Parliament. It is expected to focus on his government`s moves to strengthen welfare schemes and boost the economy.
The President`s address, extensively worked on by Manmohan Singh himself, will unveil the government`s agenda for the year in tune with the policies and programmes of the Congress party and its allies.
Soon after securing a decisive mandate, Manmohan Singh had promised a 100-day action plan for his government and he is expected to give emphasis to the UPA`s unfinished agenda.
Among other issues that will figure prominently in the President`s address are strengthening of key social sector programmes like the National Rural Employment Guarantee and Bharat Nirman schemes.
There will be a debate June 5, 8 and 9 on the president`s address after which the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, which convenes June 4, will pass a motion of thanks before adjourning.
The budget session of Parliament is likely to begin in the first week of July.
Bureau Report
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