Parliament returned to session Sunday evening, offering for the first time since the onset of the much-talked-about loadshedding and hike in fuel prices, the highest forum for the people's representatives to be heard.

President Md Abdul Hamid convened the session exercising the power bestowed upon him as per the Clause (1) of Article 72 of the constitution.

The last JS session was prorogued on June 30th, the last day of the 2021-22 fiscal, with the passage of the budget for the current fiscal among other things. But the passing of the budget takes paramount importance in the session known as 'the budget session', that closes the fiscal.

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That last session was also incidentally the 18th of the current Parliament. It was prorogued after 20 sittings - typical for a budget session that generally takes up the whole of June once the finance minister presents the budget proposal.

In the hour prior to the start of today's session, the 19th of the 11th Jatiya Sangsad, the duration of the session and other functions was decided in the business advisory committee meeting.

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Everyone present, from Parliament Secretariat staff to MPs, is being tested for Covid.