NEW DELHI, May 16: Despite its resolve, the BJP-led Government may not be able to introduce some crucial Bills in the budget session of Parliament. The Bills likely to be affected are the one granting full statehood to Delhi, the legislation on the creation of the states of Vananchal and Chattisgarh, the Prasar Bharati and the Electoral Reforms.The Bill granting full statehood to Delhi has run into rough weather with senior officials of the Union Home Ministry opposing some of the clauses. At a meeting with Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee today, DMK leaders added another dimension -- they wanted the BJP-led Government to consider granting full statehood to the union territory of Pondicherry simultaneously.
The Bills on the creation of the states of Vananchal (to be carved out from Bihar) and Chattisgarh (to be created by splitting the state of Madhya Pradesh) are still, it is learnt, in their preparatory stage. The Union Home Ministry has just cleared a draft outline of these Bills, but they are yetto be cleared by the Planning Commission, the Ministries of Finance, Environment, Law and Personnel, which is the requirement in such cases.
The Government, it is learnt, has yet to prepare a comprehensive Bill on electoral reforms. In an effort to hammer out a consensus, an all-party meeting has been convened on May 22. To be presided over by Union Home Minister L K Advani, it will also be attended by Union Parliamentary Affairs Minister Madan Lal Khurana and Union law Miniser M Thambi Durai.
The meeting will also discuss the issue of delimitation of constituencies. According to Khurana, the Bill l on delimitation of constituencies had to be passed in the forthcoming session, as "the Government will, after this, have to appoint a commission to go in for the exercise."
The entire thing, he said, was likely to take two-three years. The freeze on the delimitation of constituencies, it may be recalled, was coming to an end in the year 2000.
The Union Government has also convened an all-party meeting onMay 18 to evolve a consensus on the Prasar Bharati Bill. It will be presided over by Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Sushma Swaraj.
A similar exercise is being undertaken on the Bill to regularise the power ordinance. Khurana, meanwhile, today said the Government was planning to introduce 104 legislative proposals in all in the forthcoming Parliamentary session.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
