Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla addressed concerns about fairness and speaking privileges in the House, emphasising that all members, including the Prime Minister, must adhere to parliamentary rules and procedures.
Customs regimes can lead to labyrinthine legal disputes. Budget 2026 must recognise that an excessively defensive Customs posture can itself become a trade barrier, point out Mukesh Butani and Shankey Agrawal.
Only four working days are left for the ongoing budget session to come to an end on April 4.
Mixed global cues and decline in crude oil prices further dent the sentiments.
Nepal's Prime Minister Balendra Shah addressed parliament on the ongoing border dispute with India, stating both countries have agreed to seek resolution through diplomatic means and expert consultation. Shah's remarks about Nepal also encroaching on Indian territories have sparked controversy.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is expected to reply to the debate on the motion of thanks to the President's address in the Lok Sabha.
The Indian government is set to accelerate reforms, including measures to enhance foreign direct investment, speed up divestment, and boost asset monetisation, to maintain economic growth despite rising fuel and fertiliser import costs driven by the West Asia crisis.
Gandhi held up Naravane's unpublished "memoir" and said he would like the youngsters in India to know that this 'book' exists despite the government claiming otherwise.
Her remarks come after 84 former bureaucrats, 116 veterans, and four lawyers wrote an open letter asking Rahul Gandhi to apologise over an incident in which he had tea and biscuits at the Makar Dwar entrance of Parliament.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah is expected to respond to the debate on the no-confidence motion against Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla, following allegations of partisan conduct. The motion, moved by opposition members, questions Birla's impartiality and handling of House proceedings.
The House has been witnessing uproar after Rahul Gandhi was disallowed to cite an article based on excerpts from an unpublished 'memoir' of former Army chief General M M Naravane (retd).
The Delhi High Court has granted one-week interim bail to jailed Lok Sabha member Sheikh Abdul Rashid to visit his ailing father, under strict conditions including police escort and restrictions on visitors.
Putting aside its winter fiasco, Parliament is all set for a smooth budget session from Monday with government telling the Opposition that an announcement on the constitution of a Joint Parliamentary Committee into the 2G spectrum will be made on Tuesday.
Top Congress leaders are questioning whether the Election Commission's announced schedule for the Assembly polls unduly benefits the BJP, citing concerns over the timing and structuring of election phases.
The prime minister is now expected to speak on Thursday in the Rajya Sabha, where the debate on the Motion of Thanks on the President's Address has taken place without any disruption.
BJP's women MPs have requested Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to take strict action against opposition MPs for disruptive behavior in Parliament, including protests that prevented Prime Minister Modi from addressing the House.
Sonia Gandhi criticises the government's proposed delimitation, claiming it's a politically motivated move to delay the caste census and gain an unfair advantage, rather than genuinely promoting women's reservation.
After withdrawing the personal data protection bill, the government is hopeful of getting a new legislation passed by the next Budget session of Parliament, Union minister Ashwini Vaishnaw has said. The government on Wednesday withdrew the Personal Data Protection Bill from the Lok Sabha. The Joint Committee on Personal Data Protection Bill, 2019, headed by BJP member P P Chaudhary, had tabled its report in Lok Sabha on December 16, 2021.
The Left parties, supporting the UPA from outside, have already decided to corner the Congress-led coalition on the issue of inflation at a time when opposition parties including BJP and SP have stepped up their attack. Samajwadi Party has plans to bring an adjournment motion on spiralling prices of essential commodities on the first day itself in the Lok Sabha for the phase II of Budget session. BJP too has threatened an adjournment motion.
Opposition parties are demanding a full Parliament discussion on the West Asia conflict, criticising the government's silence and calling for a contingency plan to protect India's energy security and citizens.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Saturday described Om Birla as an outstanding Member of Parliament and "excellent" Speaker of the Lok Sabha, praising him for functioning above party lines and carrying everyone along while presiding over the House.
'Wherever in the world there is political instability, those countries are beset with severe crises today. But India is in a much better position than the rest of the world due to the decisions taken by my government in the national interest,' President Droupadi Murmu said in her address to both Houses of Parliament.
The Lok Sabha has revoked the suspension of eight opposition MPs after assurances of maintaining order and decorum in the House. The decision follows a period of disruption and debate over parliamentary conduct.
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh said there are some parties that have expressed their inability to attend this particular meeting for their own reasons.
The Lok Sabha has approved an amendment to the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, sparking debate over its impact on LGBTQ rights and the definition of 'transgender' in Indian law.
Congress sources said the process of consultations initiated by party chief and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi was a three-stage affair.
The Lok Sabha faced repeated adjournments due to opposition demands for a debate on the West Asia situation, preventing a resolution seeking the removal of Speaker Om Birla from being taken up. The government and the Chair criticised the opposition for disrupting House proceedings.
After the last Budget's announcement of a major tax relief for those earning an annual salary of less than Rs 12 lakh, there is not much that individuals can look forward to in the forthcoming Budget, points out A K Bhattacharya.
Congress member Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who had got into a CD controversy last month, is unwell and will not be attending Rajya Sabha during in the second half of the budget session of Parliament.
The Indian government has convened an all-party meeting to discuss the ongoing crisis in West Asia, following Prime Minister Modi's address to Parliament on the situation and its potential impact on India.
Union Minister Kiren Rijiju criticizes the behavior of opposition MPs in the Lok Sabha, alleging disruptive conduct and disrespect towards the Prime Minister and the House's dignity.
Rahul Gandhi accuses the government of compromising India's energy security by allowing the US to dictate oil supply relationships, raising concerns about the impact of global conflicts on India's energy access.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Union Budget on Tuesday as the Monsoon Session of Parliament gets underway next week with the united opposition set to corner the National Democratic Alliance government on issues ranging from the NEET paper leak case and railway safety.
Top leaders of opposition parties including Congress' Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge, TMC's Mamata Banerjee and Abhishek Banerjee, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, Tejashwi Yadav of Rashtriya Janata Dal and Uddhav Thackeray of Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray, besides Left leaders and those from smaller parties, are likely to attend the meeting at the Constitution Club in the national capital.
Naidu asked members to keep the prestige and the decorum of the House and said they should feel privileged to be in this House because of the people's trust on them.
The winter session of Parliament is set to begin with the government prioritizing its reforms agenda, including a bill to open the civil nuclear sector to private players. The opposition is expected to raise concerns about electoral roll revisions and air pollution.
The Lok Sabha is debating an opposition resolution seeking the removal of Speaker Om Birla, citing alleged bias. The proceedings have been marked by heated arguments over who should preside during the debate.
A man in Rajasthan was detained by police for allegedly posting a video threatening to shoot Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and 25 other MPs. The man identified himself as a spokesperson for the Karni Sena, though both the BJP and Karni Sena have denied any association with him.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah has announced a significant increase in Lok Sabha seats for the five southern states following delimitation, countering misinformation and clarifying the timeline for women's reservation implementation.
Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor has criticized the Lok Sabha for denying Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi the opportunity to speak, calling it 'absolutely bizarre'. Tharoor stated that Gandhi should be allowed to voice his concerns and that preventing him from speaking undermines the purpose of Parliament.
