JS budget session prorogued

The budget session of parliament was prorogued Thursday night with a call from the House to the boycotting opposition lawmakers to return to parliament to play their democratic role.
Leader of the House, prime minister Sheikh Hasina said that keeping in mind the two-year rule of an unelected government, the main opposition party should join the parliament to thwart any conspiracy against the democratic system.
Delevering her valedictory speech on the parliament floor on the eve of closing the budget session, Hasina said, ‘There has been a conspiracy against this parliament. The conspiracy is on, and we all should remain alert.’ She urged the boycotting members of the Bangladesh Nationalist Party and its allies to return to parliament.
In the absence of the mainstream opposition, chief of the Liberal Democratic Party Oli Ahmed, spoke on behalf of the opposition. He also called upon the BNP lawmakers to join parliamentary proceedings from the next session, expected to be held in two months time.
The speaker, Abdul Hamid, who was presiding over the session and read out the president’s prorogation order at 10:00pm, also requested the BNP and its allies to return to parliament.
The session began on June 4 and passed the national budget for the 2009-10 fiscal year and a number of a bills, during its 25 sittings.
The Finance minister, Abul Maal Abdul Muhit, had placed the Budget for 2009-10 fiscal year in parliament on June 11 to meet public expenses for the new fiscal year.
The budget worth about Tk 1,14,000 crore was passed on June 30 after 47 hours of discussion, mainly by the treasury bench lawmakers in absence of the main opposition Bangladesh Nationalist Party and its allies – Bangladesh Jamaat-e-Islami and Bangladesh Jatiya Party.
The opposition skipped the entire session over a seating arrangement row and protesting denial of entry of the opposition leader’s car inside her cantonment home.
Participation of women lawmakers was significant throughout the session. They took part in the budget discussion and came up with a number of notices on asked questions to the government ministers on different issues.
No discussion, however, took place on Tipaimukh dam proposed by the Indian government on a trans-boundary river, for which the opposition parties are drumming up support on the streets. The government is expected to send a delegation to the India to assess possible ecological and environmental effects on Bangladesh.
The session passed 23 bills, including the Human Rights Commission law to ensure independence and efficacy of the commission to prevent human rights violation.
It also passed International Crimes Tribunal (Amendment) Bill 2009, to prosecute the individuals and groups who had committed crime against humanity, war crimes and genocide during Bangladesh’s 1971 war of liberation.
Parliament also passed the Supreme Court Judges (remuneration and privileges) Amendment Bill, Preservation of Terrestrial Facilities for Bangladesh Television Bill 2009, Padma Multipurpose Bridge Project (Land Acquisition) Bill 2009, the Public Servants (Marriage with Foreign Nationals) (Amendment) Bill 2009, Public Servant (Dismissal of Conviction) (Amendment) Bill 2009, Members of the Bangladesh Public Service Commission (Terms and Conditions of Service) (Amendment) Bill 2009.
Submission of an investigation report on alleged corruption by the speaker of the 8th parliament, Jamiruddin Sircar, is also mentionable. It was the first ever parliamentary investigation against any speaker of the Jatiya Sangsad.
The committee unveiled that the former speaker plundered public money during his seven-year term. It also unearthed corrupt practices by the top legislators of the 8th parliament, including the former deputy speaker Akhter Hamid Siddiqui and former chief whip Khandaker Delwar Hossain.
The session witnessed enhancement of perks and privileges of the lawmakers. For the first time, they were given office rooms at the parliament complex to facilitate their legislative responsibilities. The authorities also pledged support staffs and office at their respective constituencies to smoothen their contact with their electors.
The chairmen of the parliamentary standing committees were also given a flag with parliament monogram to be used on their cars, a symbol of enhancement of their status. They will also be given gunmen, support staff and other facilities.
The parliamentary committees, constituted in the very first session of the current 9th parliament, were reconstituted drawing lawmakers from the women reserved seats. The slot for the women MPs were kept vacant when the committees were formed earlier.
The government also introduced a number of other bills, including Insurance Monitoring Authority Bill 2009 and The Insurance (Amendment) Bill 2009.

Courtesy of NewAgebd