SESSIONS OF PARLIAMENT (Syllabus: GS Paper 2 – Polity)

Context: The Budget Session of Parliament will commence with an address by President of India to the joint sitting of both Houses of Parliament.

Sessions of the Parliament:

• Meaning: A ‘session’ of Parliament is the period spanning between the first sitting of a House and its prorogation (or dissolution in the case of the Lok Sabha).
• There are usually three sessions in a year:

o1. the Budget Session (February to May);

o2. the Monsoon Session (July to September); and

o3. the Winter Session (November to December).

• Summoning: The President under Article 85 from time to time summons each House of Parliament to meet. But, the maximum gap between two sessions of Parliament cannot be more than six months.
• Adjournment: An adjournment suspends the work in a sitting for a specified time, which may be hours, days or weeks.
• Adjournment sine die: It means terminating a sitting of Parliament for an indefinite period.
• Prorogation: The Presiding officer (Speaker or Chairman) declares the House adjourned sine die, when the business of a session is completed. Within the next few days, the President issues a notification for prorogation of the session (End of the session).
• Dissolution: Only the Lok Sabha is subject to dissolution which ends the very life of the existing House, and a new House is constituted after general elections are held.

Budget Session

• Presidential Address: The Budget session commences with the President addressing a joint session of Parliament.
• Budget Presentation: This session focuses on the presentation and approval of the national budget, making it the most crucial among the three parliamentary sessions.
• Duration and Importance: Known for its significance, the Budget session spans from February to the third week of May, making it the lengthiest parliamentary session.
• Preponed Budget: Since 2017, the government shifted the budget session to start on 1st February annually, signaling a change in the traditional timeline.