The suspense over the controversial bill continues as the BJP insists that it was not introduced as Lok Sabha witnessed its stormiest proceedings ever.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi himself has spoken to various countries through which contacts can be established in Yemen where India does not have an Embassy of its own.
Bharatiya Janata Party's firebrand leader Sushma Swaraj will contest the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections from Bhopal or Vidisha constituency in Madhya Pradesh.The final decision about her nomination will be taken by the Central Election Committee on February 26, she told rediff.com.
Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh ideologue Govindacharya said that Sushma Swaraj and Vasundhara Raje should quit on moral grounds in the wake of the Lalit Modi controversy as from common man's perception they are "guilty".
Fifty BJP MPs on Tuesday tabled a breach of privilege notice in Lok Sabha against Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for announcing outside Parliament his decision to reject setting up of a joint parliamentary committee on the issue of alleged phone tapping.
Congress vice-president Rahul also slammed Sushma, calling her speech eloquent but hollow.
Jaswant Singh could stick out like a sore thumb for BJP even in the Lok Sabha after its attempt to remove him from the Chairmanship of the Public Accounts Committee has been virtually rejected by Speaker Meira Kumar.
The Congress dismissed as "very, very immature" Sushma Swaraj's remarks on Sonia Gandhi's foreign origin, saying the Congress chief can become the prime minister "tomorrow if the party decides" and she doesn't need anyone's approval.
Former Union minister and Telugu Desam Party founder N T Rama Rao's daughter D Purandeswari on Friday joined BJP after quitting the Congress over the Telangana issue.
Bharatiya Janata Party leader Sushma Swaraj on Tuesday said that the onion price rise issue was a case of "divine justice" as it would lead to the "downfall" of the Congress government which had used an earlier jump in the prices of the vegetable to oust the saffron party from power in Delhi.
Sushma Swaraj has nothing to say about NaMo. Neither has Shivraj Chouhan.
Those joining Prime Minister Narendra Modi's council of ministers for the first time include three former chief ministers -- Shivraj Singh Chouhan (Madhya Pradesh), Manohar Lal Khattar (Haryana) and H D Kumaraswamy (Karnataka).
Taking on senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Sushma Swaraj and the Madhya Pradesh government over a proposed visit of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse there later in September, Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam founder Vaiko on Monday urged Bharatiya Janata Party's top brass against entertaining him and threatened a black flag demo if his demand was not heeded to.
'BJP was always there in my blood, but due to some reasons I had gone out, but today I feel I have come back to my mother's lap. Looking at my brothers here, I don't feel like I'm coming back to the BJP office after 13 years'
That is only if a 'consensus is arrived at a meeting of political parties convened by Speaker Manohar Joshi on June 16', according to Sushma Swaraj.
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Sushma Swaraj on Wednesday lashed out at the Congress, saying a Union cabinet minister is "shielding" Tehelka Editor Tarun Tejpal, who is accused of sexually assaulting his junior.
Congress General Secretary Digvijaya Singh on Saturday took potshots at the Bharatiya Janata Party over the latter's decision to nominate Narendra Modi as its prime ministerial candidate, saying the party has succumbed to threats from the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, and wondered if the Sangh could still call itself a "cultural organisation".
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leaders -- LK Advani, Sushma Swaraj and Nitin Gadkari -- spent the night at Delhi's Rajghat in protest against the government's controversial handling of Baba Ramdev and his fast against corruption.
Sitting Bharatiya Janata Party Member of Parliament Sushma Swaraj on Friday filed her nomination papers from Vidisha and expressed confidence about increasing her victory margin.
The government refused on Monday to go ahead with a listed short duration discussion on the ongoing violence in West Bank and Gaza, saying it could impact India's diplomatic ties with Israel and Palestine, both friendly countries.
The much-debated Lokpal Bill was introduced in the Lok Sabha on Wednesday amid objections from the Bharatiya Janata Party and its allies of the National Democratic Alliance over the exclusion of the prime minister from the purview of the proposed legislation.
The WikiLeaks expose on the alleged 'cash-for-votes' scam in 2008 on Friday disrupted Parliament proceedings, as a united Opposition demanded a clarification from Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on the matter. The cables published by WikiLeaks alleged that the United Progressive Alliance government had bribed MPs to win the 2008 trust vote after the Left parties withdrew support on the Indo-US nuclear deal.
The United Progressive Alliance government and the Opposition seem to be heading for yet another showdown on the subject of key appointments -- this time over National Investigation Agency director S C Sinha being named as a member of the National Human Rights Commission
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Voicing 'disapproval' over the appointment of new Central Bureau of India's Director Ranjit Sinha, the Bharatiya Janata Party on Friday wrote to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, saying it should be kept in abeyance as a parliamentary committee on Lokpal has unanimously recommended that it should be done by a colleguim.
A senior Congressman from South India told Rediff.com, "This is a big setback for Rahul Gandhi's strategy of stalling Parliament. Sushma has not resigned and Khargeji is speaking and debating. What does it say about our stand in this session?"
Giving up its adamant stand, the Bharatiya Janata Party tendered an unconditional apology on Thursday for its member Ananth Kumar's remarks in the Lok Sabha against Rashtriya Janata Dal Chief Lalu Prasad during the Census 2011 debate.
The decision comes from BJP President Nitin Gadkari, so as to shut down the tussle going on between Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley that spilled into open.
Expressing anguish at the exodus of north-eastern people from Pune, Bangalore and other major cities, senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Sushma Swaraj on Friday said the Parliament must unite to tackle the issue. "Let us say in one voice in this Parliament to all residents of the north-east that this country is yours, we are all with you, study, live where you want, you will be looked after," Swaraj told the Lok Sabha during a debate on Assam.
The opposition on Thursday accused the government of failing to check terror strikes in the country, including on Wednesday attack in Srinagar in which five Central Reserve Police Force personnel were killed.
BJP leader Arun Jaitley said, "the BJP core group would be meeting later today to decide what it will do on the road (on the Lokpal issue). We will expose the government on the road and make the public aware in the wake of Thursday's developments. We will take up this Bill in the next session and expose the government there also."
The Opposition on Wednesday created uproar in the Lok Sabha over the presence of just one cabinet minister during Zero Hour when it was raising matters of public importance.
Among other dignitaries who paid tributes toSavarkar were Sushma Swaraj, S S Ahluwalia, V K Malhotra, Shri Santosh Kumar Gangawar, Maya Singh, Syed Shahnawaz Hussain, members of Parliament and many former members of Parliament. Lok Sabha Secretary-General P D T Achary and Rajya Sabha Secretary-General V K Agnihotri, also paid floral tributes at the portrait of Savarkar.
The new Lokpal Bill was introduced by Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Bansal in Lok Sabha on Thursday after an hour-long acrimonious debate among members of various political parties.
Reports said Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee was likely to meet President A P J Abdul Kalam and recommend that the LS be dissolved a day after a short session of the lower House of Parliament end on Feb 5.
"TMC doesn't have the numbers and will depend on other parties' support. Despite that, if the TMC leadership decides to go ahead, they should be prepared for whatever the consequences may be," BJP leader Murli Manohar Joshi cautioned.
Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi and other top central leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party will address a conclave of the party's spokespersons, panelists and media cell office-bearers in New Delhi on Saturday and guide them on how to handle the propaganda ahead of next Lok Sabha elections.
Senior Bharatiya Janata Party leader Sushma Swaraj on Thursday said the United Progressive Alliance government will not last beyond the forthcoming winter session of Parliament, but the Congress ridiculed the claim. Addressing a BJP protest, the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha said, "The allies of the government are slowly leaving them and it is not going to last after the winter session of Parliament."
No divestment of oil PSUs during during the month-long recess of the current Budget session of Parliament beginning March 14, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj categorically assured Lok Sabha on Thursday.\n\n