Parliament failed to transact any business for the fourth consecutive day on Friday with Opposition creating uproar over coal block scam and other issues, stalling proceedings in both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha.
Intensifying its attack on the government over the coal block allocation scam, Bharatiya Janata Party demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and sacking of Law Minister Ashwani Kumar.
Procedural wrangles over voting for taking up a discussion on the alleged interference of the government in preparing Central Bureau of Investigation report on the coalgate scam led to a brief adjournment in the Rajya Sabha on Monday.
Dudley, on a stop-over visit on way to Shanghai, along with Ambani drove to Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia's residence for a breakfast meeting this morning and had sought a meeting with Law Minister Ashwani Kumar.
The Verma panel's recommendation for disqualification of candidates against whom criminal charges have been framed has found little favour with Law Minister Ashwani Kumar who instead wants fast-tracking of such cases, preferably to be decided by a lower court within 18 months.
The Act provides for quotas in teaching positions in central institutions for persons from Scheduled Castes/Tribes, socially and educationally backward classes, and those from economically weaker sections.
Dropping of P K Bansal and Ashwani Kumar from the Union Cabinet was the "joint decision" of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi, the Congress said on Sunday dismissing reports that the action was at the insistence of the party president.
Changing his earlier stance, Janata Dal-United President Sharad Yadav on Thursday asked Union Minister P K Bansal to tender his resignation over the railway bribery case involving his nephew as Opposition protests grew louder against the minister's continuation.
The Budget session of Parliament was abruptly adjourned sine die on Wednesday , with the second phase turning out to be a total washout amid opposition demands for the resignation of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and ministers Ashwani Kumar and P K Bansal.
The Allahabad high court on Wednesday gave the Central Bureau of Investigation over three months' time to complete investigation into the murder of two Chief Medical Officers (CMOs).
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh addressed a number of issues while talking to reporters on the sidelines of the defence investiture ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan on Saturday.
The revelation by CBI director Ranjit Sinha that the law minister and other officials had vetted a status report on coal-gate which was submitted to the SC may result in a severe grilling for Ashwani Kumar when the SC hears the case on April 30. Rakesh Bhatnagar reports.
With CBI admitting that it had shared its status report on coal block allocation scam with Law Minister Ashwani Kumar, the Bharatiya Janata Party has demanded the resignation of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh alleging that he was using the law ministry to save himself from the probe in the case.
Setting off a political bombshell, Central Bureau of Investigation Director Ranjit Sinha on Friday submitted before the Supreme Court that the agency's status report on coal allocation scam was "shared" with Law Minister Ashwani Kumar "as desired by him" and that senior officials of PMO and Coal ministry had also seen it.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday demanded the resignation of Law Minister Ashwani Kumar over allegations of government's interference in CBI's probe into coal blocks and suggested that the Supreme Court should appoint a Special Investigation Team to bring out the truth.
Amid reports of alleged interference in the Central Bureau of Investigation's probe into the coal scam, Bharatiya Janata Party leader Arun Jaitley on Saturday demanded the constitution of a special investigation team to probe the scam.
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With her big-hitting prowess, a rarity in women's cricket, 16-year-old Shafali Verma was bound to succeed at the highest level. However, a lot of improvement is needed for her to sustain the sensational six-month run she has enjoyed since making her India debut, feel her coach Ashwani Kumar and former India wicketkeeper Ajay Ratra, both of whom have tracked her nascent career closely.
The Centre is actively involved in pushing through the PPCIR projects which would be spread over an area of 200-300 sq km each, Minister of State for Industry Ashwani Kumar said. "Once the policy is notified, it will lead to mega-investments through the PPP (public-private-partnership) mode in the coastal states," he added, adding that inter-ministerial consultations were on at present and rules are to be framed.
Government is working on a proposal to change the present mechanism of appointment of judges by a collegium of judges.
A discussion on reviving Indian economy at the World Economic Forum turned into a war of words between Law Minister Ashwani Kumar and Bajaj Auto chairman Rahul Bajaj over the functioning of government.
Given the strong fundamentals of the Indian economy, it will be able to sustain a growth rate of over 8 per cent over the next ten years and continue to attract investments in services and manufacturing sectors, Indian Minister of State for Commerce and Industry said in New York. "Despite some developments that are not favourable, we will still manage to have robust growth," Ashwani Kumar said.
With economic offences seeing an increase, the CBI has written to the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) to probe the growing number of white collar crimes.
Making a stinging criticism of the Central Bureau of Investigation and senior officials of the coal ministry and the Prime Minister's Office, the Supreme Court on Wednesday hauled them up for changing the "heart" of the coal-gate probe report but appeared to have given a breather for Law Minister Ashwani Kumar and the government for the time being.
A day ahead of filing a crucial affidavit in the Supreme Court on coal scam which has rocked the United Progressive Alliance government, Central Bureau of Investigation Director Ranjit Sinha on Sunday affirmed that the agency's probe into the matter was "clean and clear" and that no accused or suspect had been let off.
The Lucknow bench of Allahabad high court on Wednesday expressed dissatisfaction with the Central Bureau of Investigation probe into the murder of two chief medical officers in Lucknow and said that nothing substantial was done in the last two-three months.
The first municipal House after the high-stakes civic polls on December 4 is scheduled to take place on Friday during which all newly elected councillors will take oath and the mayor and the deputy mayor will be elected.
Encephalitis, a mosquito-borne disease, has killed 18 children in Bihar's Muzafarpur and Gaya districts, while more than three dozen are still fighting for their lives, health officials said on Monday.
Union Law Minister Ashwani Kumar on Sunday said that the law as it currently stands is not in favour of disclosing the identity of the rape victim.
The court had warned a "very difficult situation" will emerge if proselytisation through deception, allurement and intimidation is not stopped.
Advocating the need for speeding up inquiries against officials with "doubtful integrity", Central Bureau of Investigation Director Ashwani Kumar on Wednesday blamed the "weak" criminal justice system for encouraging corrupt practices.
State Health Minister Ashwani Kumar Choubey said, "In 2005, the IMR was 61 per 1,000 births; now it has come down to 44 per 1,000. It is a big positive development. The state has recorded a sharp fall in the IMR in last six years, thanks to consistent efforts and steps taken by the government."
In a surprise development, S Jaipal Reddy was on Wednesday made the petroleum and natural gas minister in the reshuffle and expansion of the Cabinet, which saw the elevation of three ministers to the Cabinet rank and induction of three new faces.Praful Patel, Shriprakash Jaiswal and Salman Khursheed were promoted as Cabinet ministers while Congress leaders Beni Prasad Verma (Uttar Pradesh), Ashwani Kumar (Punjab) and K C Venugopal (Kerala) were the new inductions.
India has told the United Nations that governance of cyber space should be democratic and transparent and cannot be managed as a "private property".
In a boost to women entrepreneurship in the country, three Indian businesswomen are among the 15 women entrepreneurs who have been awarded the third La Caixa International Women Entrepreneurial Challenge Awards (IWEC) this year.
Indian Police Services officer Amar Pratap Singh was on Tuesday appointed the new Director of the Central Bureau of Investigation for two years succeeding Ashwani Kumar.
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The Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to entertain pleas seeking a direction to the Centre to frame religion and gender-neutral uniform laws governing subjects like marriage, divorce, inheritance and alimony, saying it cannot direct Parliament to "enact the law".
Forced religious conversion may pose a danger to national security and impinge on the religious freedom of citizens, the top court had said recently and asked the Centre to step in and make sincere efforts to tackle the "very serious" issue.
