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Winter session or special session: Govt keeps Opposition guessing
Some Opposition leaders have expressed doubts about whether the government will call the winter session at all.
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NEW DELHI
The Congress has taken a swipe at the government over the prolonged delay in proroguing Parliament's monsoon session, saying a new record had been set a new record
"Today is 88 days since Parliament was adjourned sine die and has still NOT been prorogued,” Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said in a post on X on Monday, highlighting the delay that has added to uncertainty around the winter session.
The Monsoon session was adjourned sine die on August 13 but has not yet been prorogued. Article 85 empowers the President to summon and prorogue either House of Parliament, or dissolve the Lok Sabha, on the aid and advice of the Council of Ministers. But while it requires that no more than six months elapse between two sessions, it does not specify a deadline for proroguing a House.
Last month, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi about the delay amid speculation that the government may reconvene Parliament to introduce and pass the Constitution (131st Amendment) Bill and the Delimitation Bill to implement 33% reservation for women in legislatures.
In the government’s formal response, union parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju pointed out that there had been instances in the past when both Houses had not been prorogued for extended periods, including up to 87 days.
In his post on X, Jairam Ramesh wondered why the most authoritative book on parliamentary practices did not record this figure.
“The 8th edition of the authoritative Practice and Procedure of Parliament popularly known as Kaul and Shakdher published in mid 2024 with a Message from the PM himself. Page 192 says that the time-gap between the adjournment of the Lok Sabha sine die and its prorogation is generally two-four days.
“But in footnote #53 on the same page it states that the maximum gap has been 28 days and that related to the Monsoon Session in 2015…. Why that (87 days) fails to find mention in Kaul and Shakdher is puzzling. And that 87 days was by consensus of all parties because of the peculiar circumstances then,” he said.
In 2025, the government announced the winter session of Parliament on November 8. The session, which had just 15 working days, commenced on December 1 and was adjourned sine die on December 19.
A senior government official said the government must act quickly if it has to notify a winter session.
“Either they must prorogue the ongoing session and allow the President to issue a summons for the new session, or they can call a special session—an extension of the monsoon session," the official said.
According to a person aware of the details, the government needs to give 15 days’ notice before convening a full session and at least three days’ notice for a special session. This 15-day duration allows lawmakers to prepare for the session and file questions, which are then circulated to the concerned ministries.
Can the government skip the winter session?
The last sitting of Parliament was held on August 13, and it needs to call the next session before February 12.
Some Opposition leaders wondered if the government planned to skip the winter session. An NDA coalition leader rejected this view. "There will be a session in December. We don't know if it will be a proper winter session or a special session," he said.
Ramesh claimed that this record (of not proroguing the House) has been set to give the Union Home Minister time to manipulate a super-tainted two-thirds majority in the Lok Sabha to pass the dangerous and destructive Delimitation Bills.
"The unity and solidarity of the Opposition, which defeated his diabolical designs convincingly on April 17, 2026, will prevail once again if he repeats his trademark bulldozer tactics. The Congress President has written to the PM four times in the past six months requesting that an all-party meeting on Delimitation be convened to discuss all proposals transparently and in detail BEFORE introducing any legislation. The PM has steadfastly refused to do so," he tweeted on Monday.
