BJP parliamentary party meet: ‘25 Bills pending, govt may extend House session by 10 days’

However, party leaders familiar with the developments said no final decision has been taken on the extension. “There could be an extension for fewer days,” said a senior leader.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi told reporters after the meeting, “There is a possibility of this. You will be officially conveyed when a decision is taken.”

Opposition parties have conveyed their disapproval of the idea to the government. Congress’s chief whip in the Lok Sabha K Suresh said his party is “strongly against” any extension.

The current session, in which Budget and Finance Bills have already been passed, started on June 17 and is scheduled to end on July 26. The Indian Express reported on July 17 that the government was contemplating extending the session to complete its legislative business.

In the parliamentary party meeting, Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat gave a detailed presentation on water conservation. During the presentation, which lasted 15 minutes, the minister spoke about water conservation, water reuse, judicious use of water and utilising technology in water conservation. He said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s decision to create a separate ministry for Jal Shakti means that by 2024, India should have a success story on facing the water crisis. According to him, the main objectives of the mission would be linking people with water, protecting the legacy for the future and moving from water controversies to water conservation debates.

While Modi did not address the MPs, Shah reportedly spoke about the 150-km foot march the PM has asked them to undertake to mark the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi. He asked all MPs to submit a detailed schedule of the programme on the celebrations in their constituencies to party’s working president J P Nadda.