Budget Session of Parliament resumes: Opposition to target PM Narendra Modi on Delhi riots

The second part of the Budget Session of Parliament begins on Monday with the opposition sharpening its attack on the Modi government over its handling of the Delhi riots that left 42 persons dead, even as the economy passes through a delicate phase.

Congress President Sonia Gandhi chaired a meeting of the Parliament Strategy Group on Saturday and directed party leaders to question the Modi government on its response to the rising tensions in the national capital and also call for the resignation of Home Minister Amit Shah.

However, the much-debated opposition unity was found lacking last week when Congress and other opposition parties approached President Ram Nath Kovind separately to with petitions against the Modi government in connection with the Delhi riots.

Congress leaders will be submitting notices for adjournment of the scheduled business before both the Houses of Parliament and take up discussion on the Centre's handling of Delhi riots.

It will be a tough balancing act for the opposition on holding the government accountable for its response to the riots and its handling of the economy. The GDP numbers released last week showed that the Indian economy registered its slowest growth – 4.7% – in the third quarter of the current fiscal in the last six years.

“We will continue to raise the demand for resignation of Home Minister Amit Shah in Parliament,” Congress Leader in the Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said here.

In the Lok Sabha, government has listed a discussion on the demand for grants for Railways, on Monday, while the Rajya Sabha is expected to take up legislative business on the day in reconvenes for the remainder of the Budget Session.

The budget exercise would see the Lok Sabha discuss the demand for grants of ministries of Railways, Social Justice and Empowerment, Tourism, Health, External Affairs and Housing and Poverty Alleviation.

The Rajya Sabha will discuss the functioning of the ministries on Rural Development & Agriculture, Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, Law and Justice and Railways.

The Budget Session of Parliament began on January 31 and broke for recess on February 11 to allow parliamentary standing committees to examine the budgetary demands of various ministries made in the Union Budget presented on February 1.

The second part of the Budget Session will begin on March 2 and continue till April 3.