Glimpse what our politicians were doing at the beginning of 2025.
The Rajya Sabha witnessed an uproar on Tuesday over an unparliamentary remark by Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge, who apologized to the Chair while clarifying that it was meant for the government that was "trying to create a regional divide" in the country. The controversy stemmed from a statement by Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, who slammed the Tamil Nadu government for its stand on the three-language policy under the National Education Policy (NEP). Kharge's use of a Hindi expression, deemed unparliamentary, sparked outrage from the treasury benches. He subsequently apologized for the remark, stating it was directed at the government's policies and not the Chair.
Days after Jayant Chaudhary's terse 'not a coin, won't flip' response to the BJP's apparent attempt to woo him, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said the Rashtriya Lok Dal chief was a 'kid with little knowledge of history'.
There were strong indications that the minister may announce the cancellation of the exam and action against NTA DG Subodh Kumar Singh, who was summoned by the ministry earlier in the day.
BJP leaders and Union ministers Dharmendra Pradhan and Anurag Thakur had accused Gandhi of insulting OBCs.
Besides Nadda, several other senior leaders, including Bhupender Yadav, Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Dharmendra Pradhan, have also been sworn-in as Cabinet ministers, paving the way for a new face to lead the BJP.
A controversy has erupted after an NCERT Class 8 textbook depicted present-day Rajasthan as part of the Maratha Empire, drawing criticism from royal families and political leaders who call the depiction factually incorrect and misleading.
Opposition parties allege the Modi government is attempting to turn India into a 'dictatorship' with the introduction of three Bills that seek to provide for removal of the prime minister, chief ministers and ministers arrested on serious charges, and vowed to oppose it 'tooth and nail'.
India has 54 institutions in the QS World University Rankings, making it the 4th most represented country after the US (192), the UK (90) and China (72).
The death of a student at the Indian Institute of Management, Bengaluru (IIM-B), has sparked an online debate on caste-based discrimination. While the police investigation points to an accidental fall, several posts on 'X' speculate the student's death could have been a suicide due to discrimination. The All India OBC Students Association (AIOBCSA) has demanded clarification from IIM-B and called on the Ministry of Education to take action to prevent student suicides and strengthen support systems for marginalized communities.
The core committee of the Uttar Pradesh unit of the BJP met at the party headquarters in Lucknow in the presence of Nadda.
The National Testing Agency is facing criticism on social media for alleged errors in the answer keys for the JEE (Joint Entrance Examination) Main Session 2, 2025.
Former Janata Dal-United president R C P Singh joined the Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday in the presence of Union minister Dharmendra Pradhan, after which he accused Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, once his mentor, of compromising with crime and corruption in his pursuit of "kursi" (chair).
What some of our politicians were up to on Friday, October 18, 2024.
The principal of a college in Odisha was arrested after a student set herself ablaze following alleged sexual harassment. The incident has sparked protests and political tensions in the state.
While Joon was a Congress rebel, Kadyan fought as an Independent after the BJP denied him ticket.
Caste census politics took centre stage on Thursday with the Congress terming the government's decision as a 'diversionary tactic' and a move for headlines management and the Bharatiya Janata Party saying it has exposed the difference between the Centre's 'true intentions' and the 'empty sloganeering' of the opposition party.
LPG customers of Bharat Petroleum Corporation Limited (BPCL) will continue to get cooking gas subsidy post-privatisation of the nation's second-biggest fuel retailers, Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said on Friday. "Subsidy on LPG is paid to consumers directly and not to any company. So the ownership of the company that sells LPG is not of any material consequence," Pradhan told PTI. The government gives 12 cooking gas (LPG) cylinders of 14.2-kg each to households in a year at a subsidised rate.
The incident took place around 4 am when hundreds of devotees gathered near the temple to witness Rath Yatra festivities, Puri district collector Siddharth S Swain said.
Biju Janata Dal founding member and six-time Cuttack Lok Sabha MP Bhartruhari Mahtab joined the Bharatiya Janata Party in New Delhi on Thursday, dealing a big blow to the Odisha's ruling party ahead of the Lok Sabha elections.
'Many veteran leaders in the Odisha BJP had met them, but their problems were never sorted out.'
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK president M K Stalin said on Wednesday that the DMK will not oppose Hindi if it is not "imposed" on Tamil Nadu, stating that forcing the language on Tamils amounts to playing with their self-respect. Stalin's remarks come amidst an intense language row in the state, with the DMK alleging that the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre was trying to impose Hindi through the three-language formula in the National Education Policy (NEP), a charge denied by the union government.
President Droupadi Murmu hosted a dinner for the outgoing Union council of ministers at Rashtrapati Bhavan.
As many as six who hold law degrees include cabinet ministers Nitin Gadkari, J P Nadda, Piyush Goyal, Sarbananda Sonowal, Bhupender Yadav and Kiren Rijiju.
The UGC-NET, 2024, exam for the selection of junior research fellows, assistant professors and PhD scholars was conducted by the National Testing Agency (NTA) on June 18 in two shifts across the country.
India and the United States have agreed to revamp their strategic energy partnership with a greater focus on cleaner energy sectors, an official statement said. Oil Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Monday held an "introductory meeting" with US Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm. The two leaders reviewed the India-US Strategic Energy Cooperation (SEP). The two nations will intensify efforts to take advantage of advanced US technologies and India's rapidly growing energy market, the statement said.
Union ministers Prahlad Joshi and Dharmendra Pradhan alleged that Gandhi has been spreading lies on this issue.
A special website has also been created to mark the year-long celebrations, Union Culture Secretary Arunish Chawla told reporters during a briefing at the National Media Centre in New Delhi.
Altogether 20,000 Indian nationals have been evacuated from quake-torn Nepal and arrangements were being made to take them to their homes by trains from Raxaul, Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said on Tuesday.
He said one of the objectives of the new National Education Policy, unveiled in 2020, was to reduce academic stress on students.
The Lok Sabha witnessed a display of linguistic diversity on Monday, with the newly-elected MPs taking their oaths in English and Indian languages, including Sanskrit, Hindi, Dogri, Bengali, Assamese and Odia.
Here are all the sidelights from the swearing-in ceremony.
Amid a row over irregularities in competitive exams National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) and National Eligibility Test (NET), the education ministry on Saturday notified a seven-member panel headed by former Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chief K Radhakrishnan to ensure transparent, smooth and fair conduct of examinations through the National Testing Agency (NTA).
The event was also attended by Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar and Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla.
The counselling session was likely to begin in the first week of July. However, the counselling authorities had not notified any date or schedule.
The National Testing Agency (NTA) on Friday night announced the new dates of cancelled and postponed examinations, including the University Grants Commission-National Eligibility Test, amid a raging row over alleged irregularities in their conduct.
Earlier in the day while addressing the media ahead of the session, PM Modi had said that this Parliament session may be of short duration but is big on occasion, and is of 'historic decisions'.
The textbooks themselves have not been finalised by the National Syllabus and Teaching Learning Material Committee (NSTC), he said.
