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.
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Interim Budget on February 1 ahead of the Lok Sabha elections likely to be held in April-May.
The Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) has launched an integrated audit across 32 states and Union Territories to assess the ease of doing business for the micro, small and medium enterprise (MSME) sector.
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.
Congress leader Shashi Tharoor on Friday said it would have been good if Rahul had attended the budget session
The BJP has criticised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for his explanation of decentralisation using a car and motorcycle engine analogy at a university in Colombia.
Congress sources said the process of consultations initiated by party chief and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi was a three-stage affair.
At the customary meeting ahead of the session beginning Monday, the opposition raised various issues, including voter roll revision in Bihar, the Pahalgam terror attack and Trump's 'ceasefire' claims.
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.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his lieutenants are reaching out across the aisle to get key legislation passed.
Only four working days are left for the ongoing budget session to come to an end on April 4.
The Budget session of Parliament on Monday got off to a stormy start with the first day in Lok Sabha being virtually washed out on the issue of price rise and rail fare hike as a strident Opposition insisted on a discussion under an adjournment motion.
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.
This will be the first budget presented by the government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in its third term amid high anticipation following President Droupadi Murmu's assertion that it will be marked by many historic steps.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has lauded the Union Budget as a "people's budget" that fulfills the dreams of every Indian and said that it is a "force-multiplier" that will boost consumption, investment and growth. He highlighted a host of measures for different sectors, including welfare initiatives for gig workers, tax relief for the middle class, and support for the manufacturing sector.
"This is a golden opportunity for us to lift the lives of the poor, the deprived. This is the time for doing more development and reforms," he said.
The Rajasthan unit of the BJP expelled state spokesperson Krishna Kumar Janu for six years for publicly criticizing the party's treatment of former governor Satya Pal Malik and ex-vice president Jagdeep Dhankhar.
Party leaders and workers will try to build up public opinion against the alleged anti-national activities in the central varsity and in support of action against people involved in it.
The Rajya Sabha approved 15 legislations during the session while the Lok Sabha passed 23 bills, including the GST bills.
The government is open to extending the first half of the ongoing Budget session by two days if need be and Parliament can meet on March 23 and 24 to pass key reform bills on coal and mines and minerals. The first half of the session is otherwise slated to end on March 20.
Indications of a stormy start to the Budget session emerged at an all-party meeting with opposition accusing the government of "setting the agenda for disruption".
Ashwin to bring YouTube crew, security as he set to make Big Bash League debut.
Parliament introduces a new 'Health Menu' featuring millet-based dishes, salads, and lean protein options to promote healthier eating habits among lawmakers, officials, and visitors.
The parliamentary panel's meetings have become a virtual battleground between the opposition and the ruling party members, who have been vociferously debating the changes to the Waqf Bill proposed by the government.
The 15th India-Vietnam Defence Dialogue signalled a move from routine talks to deeper cooperation, with new deals on submarine rescue and defence industry to support stability in the Indo-Pacific, notes Dr Rajaram Panda.
'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.
On Friday, January 31, 2025, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman presented the Economic Survey 2024-2025 in the Lok Sabha.
The opposition has a whole host of issues to target the government.
The total assets of the country's sitting legislators amount to Rs 73,348 crore, which is more than the combined annual Budgets (2023-2024) of Nagaland (Rs 23,086 crore), Tripura (Rs 26,892 crore), and Meghalaya (Rs 22,022 crore), totaling around Rs 72,000 crore.
Catch all the action in Parliament live here.
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.
Rahul Gandhi's absence has shocked political circles who say it is unthinkable for a political party to not have its vice-president present in Parliament to stand up and raise his voice against the government's more than a dozen controversial policies in its less than nine-month rule.
The privileges committee of the Maharashtra legislature will issue a show cause notice to stand-up comic Kunal Kamra for his remarks against Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sushma Andhare will also receive a notice.
Opposition parties have called for a discussion in Parliament on the Maha Kumbh tragedy and the UP government's alleged focus on VIPs rather than the common pilgrims. Union minister Kiren Rijiju has stated that the Business Advisory Committee will decide on the agenda of the Budget Session, which will start from January 31. The Session will commence with President Droupadi Murmu addressing the joint sitting of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha. The Union Budget will be presented on February 1.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla on Friday constituted a 31-member Select Committee of the lower house to examine the Income Tax Bill. To be headed by Bharatiya Janata Party's Baijayant Panda, the panel is mandated to submit its report by the first day of the next session.
The session will conclude on July 3.
India's opposition parties have sharply criticized the Union Budget, calling it inadequate to address the country's economic woes and accusing the BJP-led government of using it to woo voters in Bihar and Delhi ahead of upcoming elections. Leaders from the Congress, TMC, DMK, SP, and CPI(M) voiced their disapproval, highlighting concerns over inflation, unemployment, and the lack of substantial measures to support the agricultural sector and the poor. They also criticized the tax cuts for the middle class as insufficient and coming too late after years of high taxes and rising prices.
The disqualification of wrestler Vinesh Phogat in the Olympics after being found overweight before the final bout also saw the government and Opposition come to blows in Parliament.
So tell us, does Sitharaman's budget deserve cheers or boos?
'It is a crisis of BJP's own doing. This is an in-house fire.'
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