ISLAMABAD, June 14: Opposition politics is likely to dominate the present National Assembly's first proper budget debate that opens on Tuesday morning with planned attacks on government policies.

Parliamentary sources said stormy opposition speeches on recent setbacks in the field, law and order, will take some shine off the government's economic successes that the ruling coalition is expected to spotlight.

The budget for fiscal 2004-05 presented to both houses of parliament on Saturday by Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz is the second of Prime Minister Zafarullah Khan's Jamali's 18-month-old government.

National Assembly Speaker Chaudhry Amir Hussain has agreed to a 50-hour budget debate, during which parliamentary group leaders will be allowed to speak for up to 30 minutes and other members 10 minutes each, an opposition source said.

Besides speeches during the general debate -- due to begin at 9.00 a.m. on Tuesday after a two-day break -- ARD parties have planned to move about 1,000 cut motions during the second reading of the Finance Bill. That could mean as many discussions on budgetary allocations of various government ministries.

MMA's plans for cut motions were not yet known, but members from the alliance of six Islamic parties are likely to focus more on attacking the government over law and order situations such as the military operations in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) and recent incidents of deadly violence in Karachi.

ARD cut motions would focus mainly on defence, interior, food and agriculture, finance, education, cabinet, water and power, petroleum and natural resources, and religious affairs.

The MMA appears keen to revive its cooperation with the ARD and some pro-ARD smaller parties to take joint actions in parliament such as protest walkouts. But the ARD and its allies shun the religious parties for their help to the government in December's parliamentary passage of the famous Constitution (17th Amendment) Bill that incorporated the slightly amended LFO in the constitution and MMA Secretary-General Maulana Fazlur Rehman agreement to his nomination by the Speaker as Opposition leader in the National Assembly although he enjoyed the support of only 67 members compared to 80 backing ARD chairman Amin Fahim's candidature.

Though the ruling alliance succeeded in dividing the opposition by preferring Maulana Fazlur Rehman as the opposition leader and an ex-officio member of the National Security Council, it too now appears shaken lately by intense speculations about the political future of Prime Minister Jamali.

The speculation is likely to grow during the budget debate as President Musharraf, who holds the key to any future change, began on Monday a new series of meetings with groups of National Assembly members of the ruling coalition from various regions. Both Mr Jamali and Commerce Minister Humayun Akhtar Khan -- most speculated contender for prime minister's job in any change of face -- have been active in recent days in meeting assembly members during the lower house sittings.

While the National Assembly will debate the budget, the Senate, which also meets at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, has seven days to make recommendations before the lower house passes the Finance Bill.