The Lok Sabha on Friday passed the Finance Bill 2023 by voice vote without discussion with the amendments brought by the government amid uproar by opposition members and with this the process of budget for the upcoming financial year was completed in the house. The Lok Sabha met at 12 noon after a one-time adjournment.
Presiding Chairman Rajendra Agarwal presented the necessary documents. Meanwhile, members of the opposition parties, including the Congress, started raising slogans near the podium. The agitating opposition members were demanding formation of a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on the Adani issue and were waving placards bearing slogans in front of the podium. Amid the uproar, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Finance Bill 2023 for the consideration and passing of the House.
Introducing the bill, Sitharaman said there have been suggestions from some stakeholders that the National Pension System for government employees should be reformed and for this she is proposing to set up a committee.
She said, “I propose to set up a committee under the chairmanship of the Finance Secretary to look into the issues related to pension of government employees with fiscal prudence.” Sitharaman also told the House that credit cards for foreign visits The payments are not being captured under Liberalized Remittance Scheme (LRS) and RBI has been asked to consider the same.
After this, the House approved the government amendments related to the Finance Bill, and the Finance Bill 2023, as amended, was passed by voice vote without discussion. Along with this, the house rejected the amendment proposals brought by the opposition members on the Finance Bill by voice vote.
The House on Thursday through ‘Guillotine’ approved the demands for grants of various ministries and departments and also the related appropriation bill by voice vote amid uproar. With the passage of the Finance Bill today, the process of budget for the financial year 2023-24 was completed in the Lower House.
The budget process began with the presentation of the General Budget 2023-24 by Finance Minister Nirmal Sitharaman in the Lok Sabha on February 1.
