The Covid pandemic has left a question mark on how the central government manages its staff.
This is despite expectations of a stormy session, given the unresolved standoff on the Opposition's insistence on a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the telecom spectrum controversy.
Stepping up the agitation for introduction of a bill for formation of Telangana state in the budget session of Parliament, activists of the Telangana Rashtra Samithi, Bharatiya Janata Party, and several other organisations staged road blockades across the region on Monday.
The central government had also sent a team of doctors to Kashmir Valley to treat youths injured due to firing by pellet guns.
Demanding that Centre make an announcement of formation of Telangana state by June 25, the Telangana political Joint Action Committee on Thursday said the members of Parliament and members of legislative assembly of the ruling Congress and opposition Telugu Desam Party should resign if this did not happen.
Reflecting a rift within Team Anna Hazare, Justice Santosh Hegde has disapproved of the anti-Congress campaign by activist Arvind Kejriwal during the Hisar bypolls, saying it was not the right thing to do and "we jumped the gun".
Arun Jaitley, Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, takes on the government, especially Telecom Minister Kapil Sibal and Home Minister P Chidambaram.
The Insurance Laws Amendment Bill is likely to come up in the Rajya Sabha on March 12 for consideration and passage.
Many other companies have expressed intent of diluting stakes.
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam President M Karunanidhi on Tuesday chose to keep the cards close to his chest on the issue of which political outfit his party would strike an alliance to fight next year's Lok Sabha polls.
The government on Tuesday conceded the opposition demand for having 30 members in the Joint Parliamentary Committee to probe the 2G spectrum issue, giving up its earlier plan for a 21-member panel to accommodate smaller parties like All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, sources said.
After the non-cooperation agitation, pro-Telangana parties and groups would now observe a 48-hour bandh in the region from tomorrow to mount pressure on the Centre to introduce a bill in the Budget session of Parliament for formation of separate Telangana.
The Congress on Monday distanced itself from party member of Parliament Suresh Kalmadi's move seeking a Joint Parliamentaey Committee probe into the Commonwealth Games issue, saying it was his independent view and the party has nothing to do with it.
The United Progressive Alliance is seriously considering increasing the strength of the proposed Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) on 2G scam from 21 to 30 members to accommodate more parties, but it is in no mood to expand its scope of the JPC to cover Commonwealth Games (CWG) fiasco, the Adarsh Society scam and the cancelled ISRO S-band spectrum sale.
With the government inches closer to the setting up of a Joint Parliamentary Committee after the Congress party reportedly took a decision that enough damage had been done by Parliament being stalled and a signal filtering across that the government had something to hide, sources said that the modalities of how this has to be done are still to be worked out.
Civil society led by Anna Hazare on Monday hit back at the government over the charge that it was undermining Parliament and Constitution and asked why an "honest" man like Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is "scared" of being investigated by the Lokpal.
Amid a stalemate between the government and the Opposition over the issue, the House failed to transact any significant business and was adjourned for the day.
Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar held talks with leaders of the opposition in her attempt to break the Parliament impasse on the 2G spectrum issue.Leaders of several parties including the Trinamool Congress, Shiv Sena, Akali Dal, Samajwadi Party, RJD and the National Conference did not attend the luncheon meeting called by the Speaker to find a solution to the deadlock.
After the shattering defeat in the general elections last year, the Bharatiya Janata Party appeared to have found its feet in 2010, putting behind internal bickerings and getting its act right in Parliament, but problems with its government in Karnataka stuck out like a sore thumb.
Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Saturday ruled out a Joint P Parliamentary Committee investigation into alleged irregularities in the 2G spectrum allocation, but appealed to the Opposition to let Parliament function smoothly.
As many as 30 sub-groups and committees worked tirelessly to devise rules and laws as well as fix tax rates for over 1,200 goods and services.
Pressuring the legislators and Members of Parliament of Telangana region to resign in support of separate state, the Telangana Joint Action Committee on Friday assured all such representatives that they will be re-elected to their respective positions unanimously.
Terming as "unprecedented" the washout of Parliament's winter session, the Bharatiy Janata Party on Tuesday blamed the Congress for the stalemate over Joint Parliamentary Committee demand to probe the 2G spectrum scam but said that the opposition protest was not aimed at overthrowing the government.
The demonetisation has caused untold miseries to the ordinary people, Yechury said.
The standoff between the government and the Opposition over the issue of Joint Parliamentary Committee on 2G spectrum, which led to the washing out of Parliamentary business in the entire winter session, could cast its shadow even on the budget session. And indication to this was given by Janata Dal-United chief Sharad Yadav on Saturday.
Railway Minister and key United Progressive Alliance partner Mamata Banerjee ruled out any difference with the Union government over a Joint Parliamentary Committee to probe the 2G spectrum allocation, even as she advocated a discussion on the scam in Parliament.
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader L K Advani said on Thursday that he will launch a "crusade" to mobilise public opinion against corruption on behalf of the National Democratic Alliance. He urged all other political parties, which are united in their demand for the joint parliamentary committee probe in the 2G Spectrum scam, to join hands with him.
Markets closed in the red on domestic worries.
Asserting that the Bharatiya Janata Party would continue to insist on a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the 2G spectrum allocation issue, senior party leader M Venkaiah Naidu on Monday said it is the government's responsibility to resolve the stalemate in Parliament.
Union Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee is likely to meet the leaders of the opposition parties again on Monday morning in his bid to break the impasse between the government and the opposition parties that has disrupted functioning of both houses of Parliament since the session began on November 9.
Backtracking on his Sunday's statement, Anna Hazare on Monday stuck to his August 15 deadline for passage of the Lokpal bill failing which he will resort to agitation.
Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee on Monday hit out at Opposition parties for stalling the proceedings of Parliament, after their demand for a probe by the Joint Parliamentary Committee into the spectrum scandal was not accepted by the government.Reacting to a question on whether Prime Minister Manmohan Singh would make a statement on the resignation of Telecom Minister A Raja over the 2G spectrum scam, Pranab lost his cool.
Chidambaram said he feels that Dassault 'is laughing all the way to the bank', as the NDA government gave a 'gift'.
Pakistan said on Thursday it will adopt a "positive and constructive" approach to its upcoming talks with India with a view to resolving all outstanding issues, including the Kashmir problem, on the basis of sovereign equality and mutual respect.
Political Joint Action Committee chief Professor Kodanda Ram says that there is no way in which this agitation is going to stop.
Dr Singh made the statement in the Lok Sabha soon after the introduction of new ministers in his Cabinet.
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.
According to the current plan in Congress party quarters to end the stand-off on a parliamentary probe into the telecom scam, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is likely to make a statement in Parliament on Tuesday, a day after it convenes, asking the Speaker to form a Joint Parliamentary Committee on the subject.By the rules, Speaker Meira Kumar will authorise this. A JPC generally has two-thirds of its members from the Lok Sabha and the rest from the Rajya Sabha.
A new bill passed by the Pakistani parliament may snatch the remote control of the country's nuclear bombs from President Asif Ali Zardari.
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