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O 281508Z MAY 09
FM AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI
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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 NEW DELHI 001084 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PTER PREL PINR KDEM IN
SUBJECT:  FIRST SESSION OF INDIAN PARLIAMENT: POMP AND 
CEREMONY 
 
REF: A. NEW DELHI 1056 
     ¶B. NEW DELHI 998 
 
¶1. (SBU)  Summary: After an unexpectedly strong performance 
in the parliamentary elections, the Congress Party and the 
United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government it leads will 
convene both houses of the Indian Parliament from June 1-9. 
The highlight of the short session will be President Patil,s 
address to a joint session of both houses presenting the 
broad contours of the UPA agenda for the next five years. 
This session will include the swearing in of all 543 members 
of the 15th Lok Sabha (lower house of  Parliament) and the 
election of the Speaker and Deputy Speaker.  The rest of the 
session will be largely ceremonial, with more substantive 
matters to be addressed in later sessions. The "monsoon" 
session 
has been tentatively scheduled for early July and will focus 
on the general budget.  End Summary. 
 
 
First Session:  Short and Mostly Ceremonial 
-------------------------------------------- 
 
¶2.   (U) A day after the Indian President swore-in the first 
tranche of 19 cabinet members on May 22 (ref A), Prime 
Minister Manmohan Singh chaired a cabinet meeting that 
decided to convene its Parliament from June 1-9. The first 
few days of the session will be taken up by the swearing in 
of the 543 members of the 15th Lok Sabha. The Lok Sabha will 
also elect its Speaker and Deputy Speaker. 
 
 
¶3.  (U) The highlight of this short session will be President 
Pratibha Patil address to a joint-sitting of the Lok Sabha 
and Rajya Sabha on June 4.  The Presidential address, which 
is written by the government, will outline the UPA,s broad 
agenda and goals for its tenure in office.  This will be 
followed by a debate on the motion of thanks, where the 
priorities and policies outlined by the President are debated 
in the separate houses of parliament.  The last few days of 
this session will likely be taken up by Prime Minister 
Singh,s formal introduction of his 79-member ministerial 
team to the 15th Lok Sabha. The entire session will be 
wrapped up by June 9th, 2009 with the more substantive July 
session focusing on the general budget. 
 
 
Speaker, Deputy - Under Negotiation 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶4.   (SBU) The names for the Speaker and Deputy Speaker of 
Parliament are still being negotiated within UPA leadership 
and with the opposition BJP.  According to local media, 
Congress,s front-runner for Speaker is V. Krishna Chandra 
Deo, Lok Sabha Member from Andra Pradesh. The Speaker and 
Deputy Speaker serve as non-partisan leaders of the Lok Sabha 
and are expected to set aside their party affiliations.  Once 
elected Speaker, the member submits her resignation to her 
party leadership.  Sources report that the Congress 
leadership would like to have an unanimous election for these 
two posts and hope to offer the BJP the post of Deputy 
Speaker if the BJP agrees to support the UPA choice for 
Speaker. The election of the Speaker and Deputy Speaker will 
be held on June 3, a day before the Presidential address to a 
joint session. However, the UPA,s Tamil Nadu ally, the 
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), would like to place its own 
T.R. Baalu as Deputy Speaker.  Prime Minister Singh 
reportedly does not want T.R. Baalu in any position of power 
due to allegations of corruption and ineffectiveness stemming 
from his last cabinet stint. T.R Baalu resigned from his 
cabinet position as Minister of Shipping, Road Transportation 
and Highways in 2009 amid controversy. 
 
Comment:  All Eyes on Congress 
----------------------------------- 
 
NEW DELHI 00001084  002 OF 002 
 
 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Comment: The newly formed Congress-led UPA 
government's first session will likely be largely 
non-controversial.  The 15th Lok Sabha represents a younger 
India, with almost 20 percent of Lok Sabha members under the 
age of 45 years.  Both the Congress and the BJP will likely 
save the debate for the July or Monsoon session which will 
focus on the budget and will present a much better 
opportunity for both sides to skirmish, assuming the BJP has 
found its feet after its devastating loss in the 
parliamentary elections.  This time, the BJP is likely to 
find a more seasoned adversary.  Congress is firmly in charge 
in both Parliament and Government due to its large margin of 
seats in Parliament.  End Comment. 
 
 
BURLEIGH