Pakistan's National Assembly session was on Thursday adjourned abruptly till Sunday after opposition lawmakers demanded an immediate vote on a no-confidence motion against embattled Prime Minister Imran Khan who has effectively lost majority in the lower house.
Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal assures Parliament that India will take necessary steps to protect its national interests following the US announcement of tariffs on Indian goods. The government is assessing the implications and engaging with stakeholders.
The opposition on Sunday asked the Centre to allow discussions in the Parliament on the United States prosecutors' bribery charges against the Adani Group even as Union minister Kiren Rijiju made it clear that the matters to be taken up in the two Houses will be decided by their authorised committees with the consent of the respective Chair.
The ruling National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is open to the idea of having a deputy speaker in the Lok Sabha, sources said on Thursday, stressing that a call on the matter will be taken later.
Proceedings of the lower house are likely to be disrupted over suspension of 6 MPs by the speaker.
In the wake of rising cases of coronavirus nothing has been finalised yet and it is will be difficult to specify how the session will be held while adhering to social distancing norms.
On Tuesday, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi accused BJP MP Anurag Thakur of "abusing and insulting" him during the Lok Sabha discussion on the Union Budget.
Members of Canada's House of Commons unanimously voted to condemn the recent death threats against their colleague, Indo-Canadian MP Ujjal Dosanjh, who had voiced concern over Sikh extremism in the country.
He was disqualified from the Lok Sabha on October 4 for the second time this year.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla is expected to name the committee's chairperson soon.
Parliamentary proceedings were disrupted for the third consecutive day in the Winter Session as opposition parties continued their protests over the Adani issue and violence in Manipur and Sambhal. Both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha were adjourned within minutes of convening, despite appeals from the Chair to engage in productive dialogue and refrain from disruption. The opposition members raised slogans demanding action against the perpetrators of violence in Sambhal, and sought discussions on allegations of irregularities against the Adani Group and the violence in Manipur.
Ghanashyampur Primary School in Dhulian, Murshidabad district, West Bengal, reopened on Wednesday after a six-day closure due to violence in the area. The school had been shut since Friday noon after violence erupted on April 11 during a protest against the passage of the Waqf (Amendment) Act in Parliament. Several houses and properties were ransacked and set ablaze by a mob, leading to fear and disruption in the locality. While some guardians are still hesitant to send their children to school, teachers are optimistic that attendance will increase in the coming days.
Parliament on Monday passed The Farm Laws Repeal Bill, to repeal the three contentious agri laws against which farmers have been protesting for over a year, with its passage in Rajya Sabha.
The first session of 17th Lok Sabha will commence on Monday, which will see the passing of the Union Budget and some key legislations like triple talaq bill being on top of the government agenda.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is likely to reply to the debate on on Motion of Thanks to the President's address.
"The President was getting very tired by the end... she could hardly speak, poor thing," Sonia Gandhi, the former Congress chief, was heard saying in clips in what appeared to be a reference to how long the address was.
While nearly 200 members were present in the Lok Sabha chamber, a little over 30 were seated in the visitors' gallery located above the main chamber.
One fact is irrefutable: Nepal's recent political history tells us that the route to a return of monarchy cannot go through India despite friends in high places, asserts Aditi Phadnis.
Lok Sabha will take up general discussion on the Union Budget for 2019-2020 on Monday.
Union Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal on Wednesday moved the women's reservation bill for passage in the Lok Sabha, saying it is a very important bill and urging members to pass it with unanimity.
As yet another day of Lok Sabha proceedings were adjourned due to vociferous protests, Joshi, the Union parliamentary affairs minister, urged the protesting members to allow the House to function while speaking during the Question Hour.
The session will begin with the address of the President to the joint sitting of the two Houses on Friday morning followed by the presentation of the Union Budget on February 1.
Will Parliament function? Catch all the debates and discussions from the Upper and Lower House.
The Congress said BJP MPs had sticks in their hands and Kharge was threatened and pushed.
Salient features of the National Sports Governance Bill that promise to overhaul several aspects of sports governance and the grievance redressal system for athletes and administrators alike in the country.
BJP MP Nishikant Dubey has written to Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla seeking initiation of breach of privilege proceedings against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for making "blatant lies and vilification campaign" during his speech in the House. Dubey alleged that Gandhi used his parliamentary privilege to spread canards without authenticating his charges and distorted historical facts during his speech. Gandhi had claimed that mobile phones were not made in India but only assembled here, China has captured the Indian territory, and India had sent Foreign Minister S Jaishankar to the US to get an invite for Prime Minister Narendra Modi for US President Donald Trump's swearing-in ceremony. He also made allegations related to the electoral rolls for the Maharashtra Assembly polls and the law for the appointment of the elections commissioner. Dubey accused Gandhi of misusing the Constitution's Article 105, which accords privileges to parliamentarians for their comments made inside the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha. He urged the Speaker to initiate proceedings against Gandhi, alleging that Parliament's records and proceedings are a testimony to his irresponsible attitude.
The Pakistan People's Party-led coalition comprising Musharraf's opponents came to power after his ally Pakistan Muslim League-Qaid was routed in the February 18 election. But the former General, who is being sidelined by the new dispensation, has apparently decided to keep a distance from the Parliament by not convening a joint session, which he would have addressed.Under the previous government, Musharraf had addressed parliament once during its five-year term.
Trinamool Congress members and some from the Congress trooped in the Well of the House raising slogans demanding a copy of the report.
Trying to fish in troubled waters, Pakistan's parliament on Thursday passed a resolution condemning the hanging of Afzal Guru and demanded the return of his body to his family.
The parliamentary committee scrutinizing the Waqf (Amendment) Bill has been granted an extension until the last day of the next Budget Session. This decision follows a heated meeting marked by a walkout from opposition members who expressed concerns about the committee's draft report. The committee will visit several states to meet stakeholders and finalize its report.
A three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry took action against Awan in response to a petition seeking the disqualification of lawmakers with dual nationality.
Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Monday called on the military and judiciary to defend democracy and not to "pack up the system" as Pakistan's beleaguered government got a morale booster when Parliament passed a pro-democracy resolution.
Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani on Tuesday asked President Pervez Musharraf to address a joint sitting of the parliament as it is mandatory for him to do so under the constitution.
At the meeting attended by 33 parties, the prime minister said suggestions from public representatives, especially from the Opposition, are valuable as they make the discussion rich.
The Opposition parties need 172 members in the 342-member house to orchestrate the downfall of Prime Minister Khan.
'The quality of justice is directly linked to the quality of judges -- if that suffers, justice delivery suffers.'
10 vacancies in the Upper House after Rajya Sabha members were elected to the Lok Sabha.
The session, which was earlier scheduled to conclude on April 3, is now likely to be adjourned sine die on March 23, sources said.
It referred to Article 105 of the Constitution which deals with powers, privileges etc, of the Houses of Parliament and of the members and committees thereof.
Pakistan's parliament has passed a bill aimed at protecting top government leaders from contempt of court proceedings and countering the Supreme Court's efforts to pressure the premier to revive graft cases against President Asif Ali Zardari.The Senate or upper house approved the Contempt of Court Bill of 2012 by a majority after a heated debate late on Wednesday night. The bill was passed by the National Assembly or lower house of parliament on Monday.
