Parliament adjourned sine die

The Winter Session of Parliament was adjourned sine die on Friday, after it witnessed heated debate on issues like violence in Nandigram and the Indo-US civil nuclear deal.

New Delhi, Dec 7 : The Winter Session of Parliament was adjourned sine die on Friday, after it witnessed heated debate on issues like violence in Nandigram and the Indo-US civil nuclear deal.

The shortest sessions in recent years, with 17 sittings, also saw wastage of lot of time with walkouts in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.

A discussion on Nandigram violence was held in both the Houses despite the CPI-M's initial reluctance to include it in the discussion.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister P R Dasmunsi described the session as a success, saying that the discussion on nuclear deal showed that the government was not hiding anything.

Speaker Somnath Chatterjee said the loss of 18 hours because of din on Nandigram and the Indo-US nuclear deal was more than made up by the Lower House sitting late.

Similarly, Rajya Sabha Chairman Hamid Ansari said the loss of 18 hours due to uproar over the November 23 Uttar Pradesh blasts and the Babri Masjid demolition issue was made up in a similar fashion.

A large number of bills were passed during this session. They include the Indira Gandhi National Tribal University Bill, the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Bill, 2007 and the Armed Forces Tribunal Bill.

The house passed 14 bills and 13 were introduced, in the session that commenced on November 15.

The Lok Sabha also discussed the statutory resolution regarding approval of the Presidential rule in Karnataka.

Among the Bills passed by the Parliament was the AIIMS (Amendment) Bill, 2007, that fixes 65 year as the retirement age of the director of the AIIMS and the Chandigarh-based Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER).

ANI