Indian parliament opens for crucial session

NEW DELHI: India's prime minister appealed to the opposition to help pass crucial legislation on corruption and land acquisition on the opening of a new session of parliament on Monday.

Parliament's 39-day monsoon session is expected to debate or approve 32 new laws including the hard-fought Lokpal Bill, which if passed will arm a national ombudsman with powers to punish corrupt politicians and officials.

"My appeal to the opposition is 'let us unite on this occasion to tackle jointly, collectively major problems that our nation is faced with,'" Premier Manmohan Singh told reporters.

Singh's scandal-plagued government is also expected to unveil a new land acquisition bill that would offer farmers more cash for their properties to make way for industrial projects.

The government also plans to introduce a new food security bill that would guarantee subsidised grain for the poor.

A law on wildlife protection, another to enhance road safety and a draft to develop national sports are among the proposed legislation for introduction in the current session.

Despite Singh's plea, the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is expected to attack the government over a string of recent corruption scandals.

The BJP forced adjournments on every day of the winter session in December 2010 to demand a cross-party probe into a telecom scandal, in which mobile phone licences were allegedly sold off in 2008 for a fraction of their value.

Prime Minister Singh insisted corruption cases being tried in courts should not be discussed in parliament's 543-seat elected lower house, or Lok Sabha.

"I also hope matters which are in the courts should be best left to the courts to decide and I am hoping the discussions will be productive and constructive," Singh added.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011