KATHMANDU, JUN 28 -
President Dr. Ram Baran Yadav has summoned the much awaited budget session of the parliament at 3 p.m. on July 5.

The President’s Office on Monday sent a letter to the Parliament Secretariat announcing the date of the parliament session that would vote for the annual policies and programmes of the government and the budget for the fiscal year 2010-11. The decision came following a meeting

between President Dr. Yadav and Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal.

In its first meeting, the House will announce the date on which President Dr. Yadav will read out the government annual policies and programmes. However, the provision of pre-budget discussion will be suspended due to time constraints. According to officials at the Ministry of Finance, the government plans to table the budget on July 11 or 12.

The crisis still looms large as the main opposition UCPN (Maoist) is all set to obstruct the session. “This is a resigning government so it doesn’t have the legitimacy to call the budget session,” Maoist Chief Whip Post Bahadur Bogati told the Post. “We will agitate and boycott all proceedings of the session unless the prime minister steps down.” Saying that the government had not consulted the Maoist party on summoning the session, Bogati said a new government should prepare the budget and the annual policies and programmes of the government.

The government on the other hand says it will bring the budget through ordinance if the Maoists don’t let the parliament function. “If there is no consensus, unveiling the budget through ordinance will be the only option,” said Keshav Acharya, Senior Economic Advisor at the Ministry of Finance. 

Meanwhile, Speaker Subas Nembang urged the government to forge consensus with the main opposition before the convening of the budget session.

Nembang met Prime Minister Nepal on Monday morning and drew his attention to the implementation of the three-point agreement signed on May 28.

“I hope the parties sort out their differences before the beginning of the budget session,” said the speaker.

The budget session of the parliament has been suffering for the last two years due to differences between the Maoists and other parties.

Posted on: 2010-06-29 07:59

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