The Budget session of Uttar Pradesh Legislature commencing from Thursday is expected to be stormy with the opposition gearing up to corner the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party over various issues, including anti-CAA protests, deteriorating law and order and police atrocities on women and the poor.

Samajwadi Party has repeatedly disturbed the Assembly’s inaugural session of the year and prevented the Governor from reading out the address for the last three years.

This issue was again discussed in the all-party meeting convened by Assembly Speaker Hriday Naryan Dikshit on Wednesday.

The Speaker sought the cooperation of opposition parties in smooth opening of the Budget session and urged them that the Governor be allowed to read the address.

The Speaker also presided over a meeting of the Business Advisory Committee to approve the agenda of the House.

Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath also appealed to the opposition parties to maintain the dignity of the House during the Governor’s address to the joint sitting.

A Samajwadi Party MLA however said, “We will welcome the new Governor as per old tradition.”

The opposition parties are upbeat to mat the ruling BJP on different issues, following its defeat and the landslide victory of Aam Aadmi Party in the Delhi Assembly polls.

The session will begin with the address of Governor Anandiben Patel to members of both Houses, while the Yogi government will table its over Rs 5-trillion budgetary for 2020-21 in the Assembly on February 18.

The session will continue till March 7, when the budget would be approved.

This will be the fourth budget of the Yogi government with the budget size crossing Rs 5 lakh crore-mark. In 2019-20, the total budget size was around Rs 4.85 lakh crore.

UP government has also fixed a target to achieve one trillion dollar economy by 2024 to contribute to the country’s target of 5 trillion dollar economy.

Apparently, the opposition has geared up to take on the ruling BJP inside the Assembly over different issues related to people, including atrocities on women protesting over CAA/NRC, unemployment, stray cattle, law and order and others.  Legislators of different parties met separately to chalk out their strategies on Wednesday .

During the session, two CAG reports will also be tabled in the Assembly, while more than two dozen bills are slated to come up for discussion in both Houses.

Meanwhile, leader of the opposition and Samajwadi Party member Ram Govind Chaudhary said the opposition would remain united to floor the government over its failures.

“Rise in corruption, deterioration of law and order besides failure in providing relief to people through different welfare schemes would be the main issues before the opposition,” Chaudhary said, adding that atrocities on women and children protesting against CAA and NRC would be a prominent issue.

“We are in touch with other opposition parties for better floor coordination in the House,” he said.

Parliamentary Affairs Minister Suresh Khanna, who is also the state Finance Minister, said that the government was ready to discuss and debate all issues to be raised by the opposition.

“But the onus is on the opposition as it has to raise the issue properly as per rules. But if they create a ruckus and block functioning of the House, then the session will not be fruitful,” he stated.

BSP leader Lalji Verma and Congress Legislative Party leader Aradhana Mishra said that their members were fully prepared to take on the government on all issues.

According to the plan, four days have been kept for debate on the motions of thanks on Governor’s address in the Assembly and thereafter a debate on the budget will start.