The CPI (M) members seemed determined to thwart the bill, aimed at increasing the FDI limit in the insurance sector. As Minister of State for Finance P K Bansal rose to introduce the Insurance Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2008, CPI (M) member T K Rangarajan tried to grab the copy of the bill from him. An agitated-looking external affairs minister Pranab Mukherjee pushed Rangarajan to protect Bansal. Another minister Meira Kumar rushed to shield Bansal, who introduced the bill.
The SBI (Subsidiary Banks Laws) Amendment Bill 2009, introduced by minister of state for finance P K Bansal, was necessitated as these powers were vested with the Reserve Bank of India from whom the ownership of these banks were transferred to the Centre few years ago. Once passed, the bill would empower the Centre to increase or reduce the authorised capital of a subsidiary bank.
Suresh Prabhu on the priority being given to safety and the need for more funds for railways to move ahead.
The finance minister is "reasonably confident" that when it comes to the crunch, "it would be extremely difficult even for the Congress party to take a contrarian view" on the GST Bill.
'If something unfortunate happens to an earning member, the family loses the crucial income which would have gone towards paying off debts, meeting the cost of children's higher education, or towards the upkeep of elderly parents.'
A courier company owner was arrested for allegedly evading service tax of about Rs 70 lakh
The government on Monday said that matters regarding Chinese intrusion can't be discussed in Parliament as it concerns the security of the country.
The Goods and Services Tax Bill was passed by the Lok Sabha in May.
The much-delayed Insurance Bill seeks to raise the foreign investment cap in the sector from 26 per cent to 49 per cent, with a rider that the management control rests in the hands of Indian promoter.
Offenders will be tried under Prevention of Money Laundering Act
Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee accused Bharatiya Janata Party of being responsible for the Rajya Sabha's failure to pass the Lokpal Bill by changing its stand within 24 hours.
A Bill to restrict voting rights of brokers as shareholders and their participation on governing boards of stock exchanges was on Monday passed in Lok Sabha without discussion and by a voice vote.
In a significant development, India is believed to have placed a funding request of around $55 million in its first call with the Pandemic Fund of the World Bank, sources said. The fund has been set up to finance critical investments in a bid to strengthen pandemic prevention, preparedness, and response capacities at national, regional, and global levels, with a focus on low- and middle-income countries. It was created in the aftermath of the Covid-19 global pandemic.
Hope floats for higher trading volumes; warehousing and cold chain facilities get tax incentives.
Crude prices touched 30-months high of $120 per barrel last month following unrest in Egypt and Tunisia.
'He is exposing the failings of the BJP, which is rankling the party.'
The new Insurance Bill may take little time to see light of teh day.
Amid the government's keenness to introduce Lokpal Bill in Parliament before the end of the winter session on December 22, the Union Cabinet on Sunday night had informal discussions on the much-hyped legislation which is expected to be taken up by the Cabinet formally on Monday.
This form of government, where secrets and major decisions are kept from the Cabinet itself, appears to be continuing, which is why the speculation around this special session, asserts Aakar Patel.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi on Monday held a meeting at 6.30 pm at the PM's residence in the capital. The Congress leaders discussed the next course of action over the Women Reservation's Bill, which will be debated in the Parliament on Tuesday.
The party says 23% of foreign investments should be by FIIs.
Tata Group-owned Air India has informed the Centre that aircraft lessors wish to set up their special purpose vehicles (SPVs) outside India since they aren't enthused about the Indian 'legal structure' and are loath to take risks. Indian airlines have a combined fleet of about 700 planes; over 85 per cent are on lease. A majority of lessors are based in Ireland due to its attractive tax policy, light-touch regulations, and swift legal system.
A Bill to give effect to the policy of corporatisation and demutualisation of stock exchanges is in the pipeline, Finance Minister Jaswant Singh informed the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.
The speaker said he would take a decision on the remaining 14 cases in a "couple of days."
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee will hold talks with the opponents of Women's Reservation Bill before the government's takes the next step on it, Minority Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid said on Thursday.
Dubbing the United Progressive Alliance at the Centre as "the most corrupt government ever seen by independent India", senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani on Saturday wanted the Lokpal bill to be passed in the next session of Parliament itself.
The levy of retrospective tax on the UK's Cairn Energy Plc is a tale of bizarre twists and turns that saw its attached shares being sold in May 2018 amid the passing of the baton from a full-time finance minister to interim one and the talks at the highest level to resolve the dispute, to claims that levy of back taxes was a result of an investigation into Panama Papers leak. The government late last month refunded about Rs 7,900 crore it had collected from selling residual shares of the British firm in its erstwhile India unit, seizing dividend and withholding tax refunds, to settle an eight-year-old dispute that had tarred the country's reputation as an investment destination. But, this did not come about easily. For seven years, the establishment vehemently justified in courts and outside seeking of Rs 10,247 crore in back taxes plus interest and penalty from a firm that gave India its biggest onshore oil discovery.
The Bill seeks to create a welfare fund for farmers at a time when Prime Minister Narendra Modi has led from the front a campaign to woo farmers and downtrodden sections of the society.
A decision on the legal right of the poor to get wheat or rice at Rs 3 per kg was deferred on Thursday as Food and Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar could not attend the meeting of a panel of ministers on the Food Security Bill on health grounds.
RBI, however, does not want banks to get into it, as it is speculative.
The interest rate charged on your credit card makes your ownership a nightmare if you don't know it in perfect detail. Here's a primer for you
At present, zero coupon bonds which are issued at a discount to the face value and where interest is in-built, are allowed to be issued only by infrastructure companies or public sector organisations.
The finance minister said the government was open to suggestions.
The finance ministry, in the explanatory memorandum to the Finance Bill 2008-09, proposes to withdraw the tax holiday which has been a window the petroleum ministry has been using to market the oil and gas exploration blocks under the New Exploration and Licensing Policy (Nelp) since 1999. The commitment to give a 7-year tax holiday to companies producing gas from Nelp blocks was finalised by the Union Cabinet after consultation with the finance ministry.
Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday rejected Bharatiya Janata Party's charge that the Congress was taking a 'U-turn' on the Insurance Bill, saying that there are "no double standards" on the issue.
Social Justice Minister Thaavarchand Gehlot sought to allay doubts raised by several opposition members about the legislation's fate if challenged in the Supreme Court, saying he can say with confidence that the apex court will accept it.
The Parliament on Wednesday approved a watered down version of the fiscal responsibility bill aimed at disciplining state finances that left out clauses binding the government to tough fiscal deficit targets.
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