Soon after United Progressive Alliance announced Pranab Mukherjee as its candidate for the Presidential election, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh called Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj to seek BJP's support for him.
An end to the ongoing logjam in Parliament on the issue of Foreign Direct Investment in retail on Wednesday appeared in sight, with the government giving enough hints that it has no problem over a vote on the issue. In an effort to break the impasse, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kamal Nath, along with his deputy Rajiv Shukla, held a meeting with Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj and her Rajya Sabha counterpart Arun Jaitley.
With the Lok Sabha speaker's all-party meeting failing to break the logjam on Foreign Direct Investment in retail issue, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has invited the top brass of main Opposition Bharatiya Janata Party for a dinner on Thursday to ensure smooth functioning of Parliament in the winter session.
Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj on Wednesday said the two-day national executive meet beginning in Mumbai on Thursday will discuss the strategy of the party to prepare itself as a viable alterative in 2014 general elections.
An Indian parliamentary delegation's visit to Sri Lanka sent a clear message to the Sri Lankan government on the need to tackle the political grievances of the Sri Lankan Tamil community. Shubha Singh reports.
Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj has apprised Prime Minister Manmohan Singh of discussions with Sri Lankan leadership during the visit of a MPs' delegation led by her to look into the resettlement and rehabilitation process of displaced Tamils there.
Sri Lanka must address the issue of reconciliation with the Tamil minority in the country with "a sense of urgency", Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj said in Colombo on Saturday. Swaraj, who is leading a 12-member Indian parliamentary delegation, said she had told Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa that the current stalemate and the deadlock on the talks with the Tamil National Alliance over the parliamentary select committee process must be broken.
Sri Lanka must address the issue of reconciliation with the Tamil minority in the country with "a sense of urgency", Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj said in Colombo on Saturday.
Terming the clean chit by the Special Investigation Team to Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi in the 2002 Gulberg Society case a "big relief", the Bharatiya Janata Party on Tuesday said ten years of vilification against its leader should stop now.
In a rude shock to top Bharatiya Janata Party leaders L K Advani, Arun Jaitley and Uma Bharati, the party leadership chose not to include their names in the list of leaders to address protest rallies.
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party member and leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj has accused Team Anna for using uncivil language against the parliamentarians.
He has spoken to the party's heads in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha, Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley, respectively , to seek support for the two items of proposed legislation. He got no assurance.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Friday defended the washout of nearly the entire Monsoon Session of Parliament by the Opposition saying a similar exercise in 2010 on the 2G spectrum issue had led to cleansing of the telecom sector and hoped it will bring transparency in allocation of natural resources.
The political storm in the United Progressive Alliance government over Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi issue on Thursday gave an opportunity to the Bharatiya Janata Party to charge that the government is short of number and is shying away from facing the amendments to the President's address in Parliament.
The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party on Friday alleged that the UPA II government is at war with itself on many issues.
The seven-hour-long debate on the Lokpal bill witnessed some interesting arguments and counter-arguments on Saturday in the Lok Sabha. Earlier, while initiating the debate, Mukherjee said that the nation was at a "cross-roads" in view of Hazare's campaign. He asked the Parliament to consider the Gandhian's three key demands within the Constitutional framework and by preserving Parliament's supremacy. Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj had a go at Rahul Gandhi.
Vice President Hamid Ansari and Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh led the nation in paying homage to the martyrs of December 13, 2001, terrorist attack on Parliament.
Vice President M Hamid Ansari, Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar, Congress President Sonia Gandhi, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley, Bharatiya Janata Party leader LK Advani and several other leaders offered floral tributes to the martyrs at a solemn ceremony on Tuesday morning
Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj on Monday demanded that the United Progressive Alliance government convene an all-party meeting over the issue of Foreign Direct Investment in retail before making any statement on it in the Parliament.
Political heavyweights on Sunday kept away from a Buddhist meet which led to diplomatic tensions between India and China and an indefinite postponement of their border talks.
With the Winter Session of Parliament less than a week away, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday gave notices to the Lok Sabha Speaker for discussion on the politically-sensitive issues of price rise, black money and the demand for formation of Telangana state.
A multi-party parliamentary delegation that visited Sri Lanka on Friday submitted a report on the condition of ethnic Tamils to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who said India will stand "solidly behind" the minority community in their pursuit for a political settlement.
Telangana Rashtra Samiti president K Chandrasekhar Rao and a delegation of the Telangana political Joint Action Committee on Friday left for Delhi to press for an early decision in favour of a separate Telangana state. The delegation will meet Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and other important leaders including Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj, Rao told reporters. The BJP supports the demand for a separate Telangana state.
Among the most prominent BJP leaders, who are expected to arrive at the Gujarat University Convention Centre in Ahmedabad, include Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj, former BJP president Venkaiah Naidu, party MP and actor Hema Malini, national spokesperson Nirmala Sitaraman and Maharashtra Navnirman Seva (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray.
Reacting to newspapers reports Leader of the Opposition Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj denied that Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani's Yatra against corruption had taken the party's second rung leadership by surprise.
Terming the "dismal performance" of Congress in the assembly polls as the "second consecutive defeat" of Rahul Gandhi, Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj on Tuesday said the Congress had made the elections a prestige issue.
Demanding immediate recall of Gujarat governor on Lokayukta appointment issue, a delegation of Bharatiya Janata Party Members of Parliament led by senior leader L K Advani on Friday met President Pratibha Patil who informed them that the matter is sub-judice.
Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj on Thursday justified her objection to exclusion of prime minister from the purview of the Lokpal bill saying the government has given no reasons for his exemption and insisted that nobody was above criminal law.
Defence Secretary Pradeep Kumar was on Saturday unanimously chosen the next chief vigilance commissioner, four months after the Supreme Court had quashed the appointment of P J Thomas to the post.
Four months after the Supreme Court quashed the appointment of P J Thomas, a high-level committee chaired by Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh on Saturday finalised the name for the post of chief vigilance commissioner.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Wednesday the Intelligence Bureau's 'chewing gum theory' regarding the alleged bugging of Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee's office as 'big joke'. The party has demanded a thorough probe into the matter.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Friday decided to oppose certain provisions in the Lokpal Bill introduced in the Lok Sabha and move for amendments in it.
A new Lokpal Bill will be introduced in the Lok Sabha on Thursday and the existing one withdrawn.
The Congress on Tuesday demanded the resignation of Opposition Leader in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj after visuals showing the top BJP leader dancing at Mahatma Gandhi's samadhi Rajghat sparked a controversy.
The issue of whether he was still in the race for Bharatiya Janata Party's prime ministerial candidate figured on Tuesday at the 85th birthday celebrations of L K Advani who turned emotional as party colleagues praised him for his leadership.
The leader of opposition in Lok Sabha, Sushma Swaraj declared the Bharatiya Janata Party's support for the Telanagan movement on Saturday.
Accompanying Bharatiya Janata Party veteran L K Advani on his Jan Chetna Yatra, Swaraj was travelling to the Gandhi maidan in Patna from Hajipur when her health dipped.
The government on Tuesday conceded the opposition demand for having 30 members in the Joint Parliamentary Committee to probe the 2G spectrum issue, giving up its earlier plan for a 21-member panel to accommodate smaller parties like All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, sources said.
The selection committee meeting to chose Central Vigilance Commissioner in September last year did discuss the issue of Palmolein case against P J Thomas, Home Minister P Chidambaram said on Monday but parried a question whether a "chargesheeted" person should have been appointed.
Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj expressed disappointment over former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee not getting the Bharat Ratna this year, saying the Bharatiya Janata Party was expecting it. She also said the sanctity of these awards should be maintained as even some failures have been conferred with the honour.
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