New Delhi : The Rajya Sabha Tuesday approved an extension till Dec 12 for a select committee which is looking into the insurance bill.
The committee, headed by Rajya Sabha member Chandan Mitra, was earlier supposed to present its report Nov 28.
The house approval came after an hour-long debate on the rules and procedure to provide the extension. Deputy Chairman P.J. Kurien said the method for approval of extension adopted by the house in this case will not be used as a precedence for future.
The motion for extending the time for the panel to complete its work was tabled by Mitra. However, some members pointed out that the due procedure was not followed.
P. Rajeev of the Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) said the committee members were not aware of the move.
“The chairman can ask for more time for submitting the report only after it has been discussed in the committee and members agree upon it,” said Rajeev.
He was joined by several other members.
Responding to this, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said either the time for the panel should be extended or it should be dissolved.
Jaitley also pointed out that two members of the committee – J.P. Nadda and Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi – had to be replaced by V.P. Singh Badnore and Rangasayee Ramakrishna, and the panel now needed more time.
“Obviously, it will need more time… They have to decide if they want the committee or want to dissolve it,” he said.
The chairman then put the motion to vote, following which the extension was granted.
Talking to reporters in parliament complex later, Mitra said: “I am confident of finishing the work by the stipulated time…”
“We are confident of getting numbers in the Rajya Sabha to get the bill passed.”
The Insurance Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2008, proposes to increase foreign direct investment (FDI) limit in the insurance sector to 49 percent from the existing 26 percent.
The bill is being opposed by several opposition parties, which have allied to defeat it in the upper house where the government lacks the numbers.
It was sent to the select committee during last parliament session, as divergent views emerged among members over the bill.
The extension will also give the government more time to get other parties on the same page.
Mayawati’s Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP), which was earlier opposed to the bill, has already mellowed its approach with the former Uttar Pradesh chief minister saying Monday that her party will not oppose the bill if their demands are met.
Sources say the government is also talking to some other parties on supporting the bill. The stand of the Congress, the main opposition party in the Rajya Sabha, remains unclear.