Pranab Mukherjee hopes budget session will be smooth

Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee today hoped that "better sense" will prevail upon the opposition and the logjam witnessed in the winter session of Parliament over the demand for a joint parliamentary committee (JPC) probe into the second generation mobile telephony spectrum allocation scam will not spill over to the budget session.

"I don't hope so. I hope better sense will prevail," Mukherjee said.

He was asked whether the budget session will be the same as the Winter Session which witnessed a deadlock between the government and the opposition over constituting a JPC to probe second generation mobile telephony spectrum allocation scam.

The opposition has rejected Mukherjee's offer to hold a special session of Parliament ahead of the budget session to discuss the issue.

"If they (the opposition) assure that there will be a debate, I am ready to call a special session of Parliament before the budget session so that this issue (setting up of a JPC) is debated," Mukherjee had said.