More than three months after the new Parliament building was inaugurated, MPs will move into it on Tuesday, the second day of a Special Session to be held between September 18 and 22. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi informed floor leaders of parties about the decision at an all-party meeting held by the government on the eve of the session.

“On the first day, the session will be held in the Old Parliament House. The next day, September 19, there will be a photo session, which usually is reserved for the end of the Lok Sabha’s tenure. Then at 11 a.m., there will be a function in the Central Hall. After that, we will enter the new Parliament. The Parliament session will start in the new Parliament on September 19 and regular government work will start there from September 20,” Mr. Joshi briefed the media after the two-and-a-half-hour meet.

On the first day, both Houses will discuss the 75-year journey of Parliament.

Fifty-one leaders of 34 parties attended the meeting. The government said eight Bills, four already listed, would come up during the session.

Sources told The Hindu that the controversial Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners (Appointment, Conditions of Service and Term of Office) Bill was unlikely to be taken up.

Only three days will be reserved for government business, about which there is still no clarity. Many parties — even ruling National Democratic Alliance members such as the Ajit Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party and the National People’s Party — demanded that the women’s reservation Bill be cleared. “It is a shame that women, who make up 50% of the population, have such little political representation,” said Pinaki Mishra of the Biju Janata Dal.

The government faced a volley of questions about why it is maintaining “secrecy” about the agenda.