Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar on Friday said a wad of currency notes was recovered by security staff from the seat allotted to Congress MP Abhishek Manu Singhvi.
He termed this as 'intolerance' towards the constitutional head of the state, and expressed confidence that the media will not be a 'silent spectator' to such episodes.
Delhi recorded a voter turnout of over 19 per cent in the first four hours of polling on Wednesday across 70 assembly constituencies, with the highest voter participation witnessed in North East district.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday said he would not be able to attend the flag hoisting function in the new Parliament building on Sunday and expressed disappointment over getting the invite 'quite late'.
The controversy over a Trinamool Congress member of Parliament mimicking Vice President Jagdeep Dhankhar took political centrestage on Wednesday with the issue playing out both inside and outside Parliament and President Droupadi Murmu joining Prime Minister Narendra Modi in expressing dismay.
Rajya Sabha chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar on Friday suspended Congress member of Parliament Rajani Ashokrao Patil for the remainder of the current Budget Session for filming House proceedings.
Parliamentary sovereignty cannot be permitted to be diluted or compromised by the executive or the judiciary, he said in his strongest remarks yet against alleged judicial interference in the working of Parliament.
The trouble started when the SP member wanted to make a point on an ongoing heated discussion between Opposition parties and the Chairman in the Rajya Sabha over certain remarks made by BJP MP Ghanshyam Tiwari on Kharge a few days ago.
'China is India's primary strategic challenge, which will not go away.
The Bharatiya Janata Party, however, said the governor is acting within his constitutional parameters while the "TMC is scared".
Kharge wanted to raise the issue of some of his observations being expunged by the chair, but he was not allowed on the plea that he cannot read the same remarks which have already been expunged.
Any direction or rule of the House cannot subvert the constitutional guarantee of freedom of speech granted to members of Parliament, Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge said, asserting that any criticism of the government and its policies can never be equated with the "dignity" of the Council of States.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah asked the opposition on Monday to allow a debate on the Manipur issue to begin in Parliament but the deadlock persisted in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha as both sides refused to budge from their stand, with Congress and its allies insisting on a statement from Prime Minister Narendra Modi first.
C V Ananda Bose was on Thursday appointed as the new governor of West Bengal, a communique from the Rashtrapati Bhavan said.
The Rajya Sabha chairman asked him to authenticate his assertions and refused to accept newspaper clippings that the Congress leader showed to buttress his points.
With this, the total number of MPs suspended for unruly behaviour from the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha stands at an unprecedented 146 since December 14.
The Upper House was earlier adjourned twice in the afternoon session when it took up the discussion on the Budget after Prime Minister Narendra Modi finished his speech on the motion of thanks on the President's address and the motion was passed.
The Trinamool Congress will abstain from the upcoming vice presidential election as it does not agree with the way the Opposition candidate was decided without keeping the party in the loop, senior leader Abhishek Banerjee said on Thursday.
The ruling Trinamool Congress in West Bengal on Wednesday accused Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar, who is on a visit to New Delhi, of violating constitutional norms and asked him not to return to the state.
Accompanying the Veep on his first foreign yatra after being elected to the vice presidency in August is External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, who, we guess, will do the heavy lifting at the summit, while Dhankar works his well known charm on the ASEAN leadership fraternity.
Senior Congress leader and Supreme Court lawyer Abhishek Manu Singhvi is likely to initiate the debate from the opposition side, the sources said.
Moments after administering the oath to the ministers of the Mamata Banerjee government, Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Monday expressed concern over the situation arising out of post-poll violence in the state and said he would soon be visiting the affected areas.
Soon after the House was adjourned, Goyal went to the chairman's chamber and leaders of many opposition parties followed him.
Alva said she believes that by supporting the BJP in this election, such parties and leaders have damaged their own credibility.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge were among the top leaders who paid homage to former prime minister Manmohan Singh at his home in New Delhi on Friday.
The Congress has, however, countered this saying someone who is not an MP of Rajya Sabha cannot be called to the House and there cannot be any discussion/reflection on or about an MP of Lok Sabha.
The Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) parties, led by the Congress, staged a walkout from both Houses of Parliament on Wednesday, in protest against all states except two being 'ignored' in the budget, an allegation termed 'outrageous' by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharamanm, who said all the states never found a mention in any of the previous budgets, including those presented by the Congress.
The government has convened an all-party meeting on Wednesday to deliberate on a host of issues related to Parliament's monsoon session, which will begin from July 20.
Former West Bengal governor Jagdeep Dhankhar's subsequent elevation set a new benchmark for the actions of those who occupy Raj Bhavans, observes Aditi Phadnis.
Dhankhar, 68, who was Union deputy minister of parliamentary affairs in 1990-91, quit the Congress in 2003 and became a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party.
President Droupadi Murmu, Prime Minister Narendra D Modi, senior Cabinet ministers, Congress and Opposition leaders paid their respects to former prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh, who passed into the ages on Thursday night, at his residence in New Delhi on Friday.
West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar on Tuesday stirred fresh controversy by saying 'ego prevailed over public service' on Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee skipping Prime Minister Narendra Modi's meeting to review post-cyclone damages on May 28.
What some of our leaders were up to this week.
Justice Khanna, who will serve as CJI for a little over six months, will demit office on May 13, 2025.
Trinamool Congress leader Sukhendu Sekhar Roy on Thursday claimed that West Bengal Governor Jagdeep Dhankhar could also be involved in the fake vaccination camp scam.
President Droupadi Murmu on Saturday conferred Bharat Ratna, the country's highest civilian honour, on former prime ministers P V Narasimha Rao and Chaudhary Charan Singh, agriculture scientist M S Swaminathan and two-time former Bihar chief minister Karpoori Thakur, posthumously at a ceremony held at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi.
A BJP MP from Nagaland has alleged that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi came "very close" to her and "shouted" at her during a protest outside the Parliament, making her feel "uncomfortable." The incident has led to a war of words between the ruling BJP and the opposition Congress, with both sides accusing each other of misconduct. The BJP has demanded an apology from Rahul Gandhi, while the Congress has denied the allegations.
West Bengal Governor C V Ananda Bose on Thursday said that he was apprehending a threat to his security because of the presence of the current contingent of Kolkata Police posted at Raj Bhavan in Kolkata.
Introducing the 128th Constitution Amendment Bill, which was approved by a two-thirds majority in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday, Meghwal recounted the measures initiated by the Narendra Modi government for the empowerment of women over the last nine years.