The suspense over the fate of embattled Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan continued on Sunday night with a high-level Congress committee tasked to give a report on the housing scam in Mumbai saying it would need 'more time' to do its job. Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, who is heading the two-member committee, met fellow panel member Defence Minister A K Antony on Sunday night shortly after his arrival from Kolkata.
Contrary to the finance ministry's initial idea that some large industrial houses could be given bank licences, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) did not name any big corporate in the first round of licensing.
'Something very drastic must have happened.'
Five-term Lok Sabha Member of Parliament Meira Kumar on Tuesday became the consensus candidate of the ruling United Progressive Alliance and the opposition Bharatiya Janata Party for the post of Lok Sabha Speaker. Leader of the House Pranab Mukherjee led a UPA delegation to submit Kumar's nomination papers to Lok Sabha Secretary General P D T Achary for the election to the Speaker's post scheduled to be held on Wednesday. Kumar, 64, will be the first woman to head the LS.
A group of Anna Hazare supporters on Friday protested outside the residence of Congress General Secretary Rahul Gandhi, shouting slogans in favour of the Gandhian and his demand for a strong Lokpal.
The govt said seeking information about the legal position of any case was its 'legitimate right'.
A decision by the Congress party on Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan's resignation in the wake of an embarrassing housing scam in Mumbai is expected to take some more time.
Advani said it was a serious matter and wanted Government to take Parliament into confidence.
Congress president Sonia Gandhi stumped party members by taking the last row in the Lok Sabha on Monday.
'There was trust, but perhaps there was also this apprehension that given the supreme post of prime minister, Sonia Gandhi felt her authority may be a challenged.'
Home Minister Sushilkumar Shinde will be the new Leader of the House in Lok Sabha, after his predecessor Pranab Mukherjee became the President.Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has nominated Shinde to the post, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal told reporters.
In spite of all the talk of helping the aam aadmi, the outlay under the Indira Aawas Yojana (IAY) for the rural poor in 2009-10 is more or less the same as in 2008-09 (revised estimate).
"I believe that the moral authority to govern vests with the PM. The overall state of the nation is reflective of the functioning of the PM and his administration. While Dr Singh was preoccupied with saving the coalition, which took a toll on governance, (Narendra) Modi seemed to have employed a rather autocratic style of governance during his first term, as seen by the bitter relationship among the government, the legislature and the judiciary.
According to Mukherjee, the mere physical presence of the prime minister in Parliament makes a tremendous difference to the functioning of this institution.
22 images that captures glimpses of a most unusual Indian who led the nation for 10 years.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Friday asked banks and financial institutions, which have exposure to companies involved in the multi-crore rupee housing finance racket, to ensure that investor money is safe.
In 2017, a retired R&AW officer conveyed that Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath was keen to get monarchy restored in Nepal and suggested that I support these efforts.
"In India, we derive our strength from tolerance, and respect our pluralism. We celebrate our diversity," he said.
With the Lok Sabha unanimously making an appeal to Anna Hazare to end his fast, Finance Minister and government interlocutor Pranab Mukherjee on Thursday hoped that the social activist will listen to this message.
An active politician for over four decades, Pranab Mukherjee on Thursday completed one year in office as a copybook President, a period that was marked by proactive steps within and outside Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Do you have a funny or harrowing experience to share about your rendezvous with pesky telemarketers? Simply write in to us at getahead@rediff.co.in with the subject 'You are not alone Pranab da' and we'll publish the best stories right here on rediff.com!
The open buggy was seen as a security threat by the security agencies then, following which the traditional carriage was replaced by bullet-proof cars.
Voicing concern over disruptions in Parliament, President Pranab Mukherjee on Monday asked Parliamentarians to do "some introspection" over functioning of the House.
Manmohan Singh, reveals the former President, was keen that either P Chidambaram or Montek Singh Ahluwalia be the finance minister.
President Pranab Mukherjee will on August 2 watch a special screening of a documentary capturing the story of the Rashtrapati Bhavan from its conception to its completion and the changes it has undergone during his tenure.
False and acrimonious debates such as Modi versus Manmohan might allow for victories that are political and partisan. But the real loser is the nation, India and Bharat, notes Arvind Subramanian, former chief economic advisor to the Modi government in its first term.
President Pranab Mukherjee on Monday asked ruling and opposition parties to put their heads together and find out a workable solution, apparently to avoid frequent issuing of ordinances.
Former PM Manmohan Singh and Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi also paid their tributes.
The much-awaited Lokpal Bill today got the assent from President Pranab Mukherjee, providing for the creation of an anti-graft watchdog which will bring even the prime minister under its purview with certain safeguards.
'Life has been full of rewards, full of sadness.'
For any government, achieving those goals would be a tall task, given the current resource constraint the government faces.
With two weeks of the monsoon session having passed without much significant business, Leader of the House in Lok Sabha Pranab Mukherjee and the Parliamentary Affairs Minister P K Bansal on Friday reached out to the Bharatiya Janata Party top brass, including L K Advani, to discuss smooth passage of pending bills in the House.
Mukherjee had lost the Lok Sabha elections twice earlier and it was third time lucky for him, much to the delight of the Congress leader's supporters.
On a hectic day marking completion of one year in office, President Pranab Mukherjee on Thursday inaugurated a library and sports ground with a small regret that if he had come to Rashtrapati Bhavan earlier he could have saved some structures from demolition.
On a day when Trinamool Congress and Telugu Desam Party members fought over a room in Parliament, President Pranab Mukherjee on Tuesday made an emotional appeal to members of Parliament to maintain its dignity, honour and prestige.
The MPs include ruling Bharatiya Janata Party leaders Meenakshi Lekhi, Anant Kumar Hegde and Parvesh Singh.
What stood out in his 15-year journey as a member of the political executive at the Centre was his glowing record as India's most successful and effective finance minister. Both as prime minister and finance minister, he understood the importance of gradualism, except when the economy or the polity was in a crisis.
Finance ministry sources said Mukherjee merely pointed out to the Lok Sabha Secretariat that any change in salaries has to go through a process under the ministry of finance, while Lok Sabha sources expressed ignorance about the finance ministry raising any objection.
He said assessees' "comfort zones" have to be significantly enhanced, even as deliberate evaders and offenders are punished.
President Pranab Mukherjee will address a joint sitting of Parliament on Monday, laying the roadmap of the new government headed by Narendra Modi.
