JS budget session begins amid COVID-19 pandemic

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DHAKA, June 10, 2020 (BSS) – Selected number of lawmakers today met in Jatiya Sangsad as President Abdul Hamid called to session parliament over the proposed national budget for 2020-2021 fiscal in an extraordinary situation caused by COVID-19 onslaughts in the country as elsewhere in the globe.

Leader of the House and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina joined the session, the eighth of the current 11th parliament, when its routine sitting arrangements were revised to maintain physical distancing in line with health guidelines for COVID-19.

“This is an important session. (But) It will be conducted following all health guidelines, including use of face masks and hand gloves alongside maintaining social distancing,” Speaker Shirin Sharmin Chaudhury said in her opening statement after recitations from the Holy Quran.

A Parliament Secretariat handout earlier said that the budget session would continue for 12 days while out of 350 members, as high as 90 lawmakers to be selected by parliamentary whips would join the session to fulfill the quorum to pass the budget.

The pandemic forced the Jatya Sangsad to discard a tradition of inviting distinguished people foreign dignitaries and even journalists, who instead were required to cover the opening session with the help of virtual media.

The session began a day ahead of planned tabling of the supplementary budget for FY 2019-20 and proposed budget for FY 2020-21 by Finance Minister AHM Mustafa Kamal.

The Speaker said in line with the Parliamentary Rules of Business the House would need to pass the Finance Bill on June 29 and the proposed budget for the coming fiscal on June 30 after days of discussion.

“I hope all including treasury bench, opposition bench and independent lawmakers, will make the short-period budget session effective and active through important discussions,” the speaker said.

The House today adopted a condolence motion mourning deaths of the COVID-19 victims including Professors Emeritus and national professor Dr Anisuzzaman.

The Speaker simultaneously named several prominent persons including sitting lawmaker Habibur Rahman Mollah and eight other former lawmakers and one member of erstwhile provincial assembly who died since the last Sangsad session was prorogued.