'The BJP must have decided to replace Nitish with a green signal from JD-U leaders close to him.'
Though the Bharatiya Janata Party is not overly worried about getting the amended land acquisition bill through in the Upper House, it has nevertheless decided to have a three-day gap between the dates of the sitting of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha for the Budget session.
Cricket maestro Sachin Tendulkar has come under criticism for not attending a single session of Paliament this year. Parliamentary records the former batsman has not attended a single session this year. He made it to just three in 2013 and has so far not participated in any debates in the house.
As polling begins on Friday for the remaining 25 Rajya Sabha seats in six states, here's a list of some of the bigwigs who are seeking to be elected to the Upper House of Parliament.
The BJP has announced its initial list of 88 candidates for the Assam Assembly elections, featuring key contests and strategic reassignments, including Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma's bid to retain his Jalukbari seat.
The BJP's West Bengal unit chief, Samik Bhattacharya, criticised the Trinamool Congress (TMC) government, accusing it of crushing democracy and fostering lawlessness in the state. He highlighted alleged political violence, economic decline, and disrespect for constitutional posts under the TMC's rule.
The contentious bill will be tables in RS on Wednesday. The BJP hopes to get up to 130 votes in a 240-member upper house.
A defeat in UP will, therefore, dent the Modi government's efforts to win more seats in the Rajya Sabha.
The Congress is finding it tough to accommodate defeated senior leaders in the Rajya Sabha as it does not have the numerical strength in various assemblies to win the seats.
The average asset of a Rajya Sabha Member of Parliament is Rs 20.17 crore, says a report by the Association for Democratic Reforms. It also says that 67 per cent of Rajya Sabha MP's are crorepatis.
AIADMK has finalised its seat-sharing arrangement with key NDA alliance members, including the BJP, PMK, and AMMK, for the upcoming elections, as announced by AIADMK chief Edappadi K Palaniswami.
Uncertainty surrounds the passage of the Lokpal and whistleblowers' protection Bills in Rajya Sabha on Thursday.
There are two such seats in Tamil Nadu and one each in West Bengal, Assam, Maharashtra, Puducherry and Madhya Pradesh.
The death of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar has created a leadership crisis within the NCP, raising questions about the party's future and potential reunification with the Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP).
Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge's remark calling Prime Minister Narendra Modi a 'terrorist' has triggered strong reactions from the BJP, who have demanded an apology from Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin.
The Vanniyar vote can tip the balance in 70 to 75 assembly constituencies of the 234 in the state, mainly in the Ranipet, Vellore, Thiruppathur, Krishnagiri, Dharmapuri, Tiruvannamalai, Arani, Villupuram and Kallakurichi districts.
The Bahujan Samaj Party on Thursday promised to vote in favour of Foreign Direct Investment in Rajya Sabha, giving much relief to the government which is bracing for a crucial vote on Friday, even as the Bharatiya Janata Party and All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam attacked parties which sided with the United Progressive Alliance despite having reservations over the measure.
The crucial, neck-to-neck contest was necessitated as the Bharatiya Janata Party fielded three candidates while Shiv Sena put up two and Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party one each.
The election to the post is mostly decided by consensus, but opposition leaders complain that the Narendra Modi government was yet to reach out to them, reports Archis Mohan.
For renomination to the Rajya Sabha, Nadda will have to look for a seat outside his home state of Himachal Pradesh as the Congress is in power there.
The Congress party in Haryana boycotted a special session of the state assembly, accusing the ruling BJP of using the platform for political propaganda related to a defeated Constitution amendment bill on women's reservation. The BJP criticised the Congress's move as anti-women.
The opposition had fielded Manoj Jha, an Rashtriya Janata Dal member.
The BJP's defeat in Bihar dents its hopes of improving its RS tally but the grand alliance victory could also present the first signs of tension when five JD-U members retire next year.
Union minister Smriti Irani will also contest the Rajya Sabha polls from Gujarat from where she is already an MP and her term ends on August 18.
Even his critics say Thaawar Chand Gehlot is a man of delivery. 'If a task is assigned, he wins it over with political sagacity,' they say.
Ignoring strong reservations by some senior party leaders and members of Legislative Assembly, Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad on Wednesday announced his party's support to the ruling party's two candidates in the Rajya Sabha bye-election.
With leaders of various opposition parties taking out a protest march in support of their demand for revoking the suspension of the 12 MPs, the Bharatiya Janata Party leader Pralhad Joshi took a swipe at them, saying the voters of the country have given them "marching orders" twice -- a reference to their back-to-back defeats in two Lok Sabha elections -- and will reduce their presence further.
Even though MLAs are required to show their ballot to respective party whips before casting their vote, all parties have ensured their MLAs are housed in five star hotels closer to the Maharashtra Vidhan Sabha where voting will take place on June 10.
The BJP is still short of the halfway mark of 123 in the 245-member House, but can now muster a 'working' majority with help of allies, friendly parties, some Independents and nominated members.
An irate woman confronted Maharashtra minister Girish Mahajan during a BJP demonstration in Mumbai, blaming him for the traffic chaos caused by the protest over the women's reservation bill. The incident, captured on video, has sparked criticism of the BJP's protest tactics.
The Rajya Sabha on Monday witnessed uproar over the steep Rs 2.35 a litre hike in petrol price and 50 paisa a litre increase in cost of diesel.
Mallya showed his net worth at Rs 615 crore, mainly in shares and bonds.
The BJP-led government in Bihar secured a vote of confidence in the state assembly, with Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary pledging economic development and significant investments. The motion was passed amidst heated debates and accusations between the ruling NDA and the opposition, highlighting political tensions and differing views on issues like women's reservation.
Its electoral triumphs in assembly polls, particularly in Uttar Pradesh, have made the BJP the single-largest party in the Rajya Sabha.
Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar's resignation has triggered the search for his successor. The BJP-led NDA is expected to consider probable candidates soon.
According our source in New Delhi, it took Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and All India Dravida Munetra Kazhagam chief J Jayalalithaa's early-hour phone call to Prime Minister Narendra Modi eased the tension about the unanimous resolution on the Judicial Appointments Commission Bill in the Rajya Sabha.
Rajya Sabha failed to transact any business for the second day on Thursday after uproar by members over the Telangana issue, killing of a student from Arunachal Pradesh in Delhi and plight of Tamil fishermen.
It now has become clear that he will have to quit his post.
Be it Assam, Haryana or Delhi, the Congress is facing one crisis after another regarding its Rajya Sabha nominations, reports Renu Mittal.
Former Rajya Sabha MP Sabir Ali, who was expelled from the JD-U 11 years ago for praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi, was on Saturday named the party's candidate from Amour assembly seat in Bihar.
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