In view of the possibility of a second wave of COVID-19, the winter session of the Maharashtra Legislature, which was slated for December 7, is likely to be postponed or held for two days. The Business Advisory Committees of the assembly and council are expected to meet early this week and take a final decision. Already, for the first time since 1960, it was decided to shift the venue from Nagpur to Mumbai due to the pandemic.
The parliament is unlikely to be convened in Delhi following the spurt in cases. It is expected to reopen by January end before the budget. Maharashtra Legislative Council Chairman Ramraje Nimbalkar told the Free Press Journal, “The BACs may meet early next week to take a decision.”
Maha Vikas Aghadi partners –Shiv Sena, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Congress- may desire to defer the winter session till January to avoid further spread of the virus. Their legislators have communicated to them that they did not want to take any risk at a time when the Health Department has hinted at a spike in cases. On the other hand, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which is targeting the MVA government on a number of issues, may press for a session, but ultimately yield to avoid blame game.
It must be mentioned here that the state government curtailed the monsoon session to two days in September during the peak of coronavirus pandemic.
