The Bhartiya Janata Party is missing its most vocal face, Sushma Swaraj, during the current session of Parliament as she is down with infection since the past three weeks and has been admitted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi.
In a major security breach on the anniversary of the deadly 2001 Parliament terror attack, two persons on Wednesday jumped into the Lok Sabha chamber from the visitors' gallery, shouted slogans and released yellow smoke from canisters that triggered panic and chaos in the House.
The session will have 20 working days for now.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi briefed the BJP MPs on the government's plans to celebrate 75 years of the nation's Independence during the parliamentary party meeting.
Sri Lanka's new President Maithripala Sirisena on Monday unveiled his cabinet that included members from a cross-section of parties and announced fresh parliamentary polls in 100 days, two years ahead of schedule.
Dharmendra Pradhan, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, Nirmala Sitharaman and Piyush Goyal have been elevated to Cabinet ministers.
This will be the second all-party meeting called by the government to discuss the COVID-19 situation since the outbreak of the pandemic.
The Budget session of Parliament is set to start on a stormy note on Tuesday with issues like the Jawaharlal Nehru University row, Dalit scholar Rohith Vemula's suicide and Pathankot terror strike set to dominate the proceedings.
Rajya Sabha was adjourned for the day on Friday amid an uproar in the House over the issue of law and order situation in Rajasthan.
While it was no secret that Mamata was upset with Patha Chatterjee for a while as he has hardly been successful in bringing any big-ticket investment, there is a strong buzz that it was the controversy over the HPL bid that finally influenced her decision.
Portfolios were on Tuesday allocated in the new Bihar cabinet headed by Chief Minister Nitish Kumar who, predictably, retained the all-important home department which helps him keep direct control on the state police.
The avoidable stresses and strains in ties helped in one way. It showed for the entire region how a matured India handled diplomatic relations, especially with a smaller and suspicious neighbour, with practised dignity and patience, unruffled by provocations in word, deed and action, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
Full list of the rejigged Union Council of Ministers
During a meeting of parties convened on Sunday ahead of the Monsoon Session of Parliament, Tamil Nadu-based Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam demanded India intervene in the neighbouring country which is facing a debilitating economic crisis.
The ED had arrested Chatterjee, who is also the Trinamool Congress secretary-general, on July 23 in connection with its investigation into alleged irregularities in the recruitment drives by the School Service Commission.
Noted economist and senior Trinamool Congress leader Amit Mitra is likely to step down as the West Bengal finance minister and even retire from active politics due to ill health, party sources said on Sunday.
Alternatively, the government may go in for a five-day session to blunt criticism that it was running away from debates.
Nearly a 100 members participated in the debate which began Thursday afternoon and concluded at 11.58 pm.
Maharashtra's chief minister-designate is also wooing the PWP, which triggered a crisis in June, 2002 by pulling out of the ruling coalition.
Highlighting the low representation of women in the Central Armed Police Forces, a parliamentary committee has asked the Union home ministry to take steps to encourage them to join the services, besides recommending a reservation for transgenders.
Union Minister for Parliamentary Affairs Pralhad Joshi slammed Congress leader Shashi Tharoor for suggesting that Republic day celebrations should be cancelled. The minister termed Tharoor's remark "utterly irresponsible".
The Parliamentary Standing Committee said despite the fencing, floodlighting and patrolling by the Border Security Force personnel, Pakistani terrorists managed to sneak into India from across the border.
The ethics committee of the Lok Sabha has asked Trinamool Congress member Mahua Moitra to appear before it on October 31 in relation to the allegations levelled against her by Bharatiya Janata Party MP Nishikant Dubey, who told the panel on Thursday that it was an "open and shut" case and she should be disqualified.
It also suggested that the IPC provision related to adultery should be retained in the Sanhita by making it gender neutral "for the sake of protecting the institution of marriage".
'Under this amendment, in any dispute over Waqf properties, the Waqf Board cannot approach the court.' 'This is very surprising because the government instead of protecting Waqf properties they are snatching it away and not allowing them to go to court.' 'The third biggest landowner in India is the Waqf Board after the Indian Army and Indian Railways.'
Rajya Sabha's next session will begin from April 23, three days after the second half of the budget session of Lok Sabha commences.
India on Thursday described as 'matter of serious concern' reports that said some members of the Indian community in Canadian province of British Columbia received 'extortion calls'.
West Bengal's industry minister Partha Chatterjee, arrested in the SSC scam, should be removed immediately from his post and expelled from the Trinamool Congress, the party's state general secretary Kunal Ghosh demanded on Thursday.
Breaking a long tradition, the PMO has ensured that specific divisions in each ministry are allocated to junior ministers.
More screenings are expected to take place in some colleges in Ernakulam and Thiruvananthapuram later Tuesday, a senior police officer said.
The move to resume work in ministries comes nearly a month after the government issued work from home protocols in its fight against the coronavirus pandemic.
With a Karnataka minister's alleged remarks that the 'government is not functioning, we are somehow managing' causing embarrassment to his administration, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Tuesday tried to do damage control by stating that the comments were made in a 'different context'.
Chief Election Commissioner Nasim Zaidi has written to Cabinet Secretary P K Sinha who is likely to consult the parliamentary affairs ministry before framing his response on the government's plans to advance the budget presentation to February 1, sources said.
The prime minister also asked senior ministers to hand-hold the new incumbents, sources said after the meeting.
Five months into office, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will expand and reshuffle his Council of Ministers on Sunday, bringing in new faces and is likely to drop a few.
Parliament proceedings were adjourned for the day on Monday following protests by the opposition which has been demanding a statement from Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the House on the Manipur issue. In the Rajya Sabha, the opposition kept insisting on a discussion under Rule 267 of the House.
'We are not secessionists, we want to coexist with our countrymen but not on the terms that will strip us off our dignity and a right to peaceful existence.'
'Somebody was using somebody to make statements that will stir the stock market and lead to a surge.' 'A sudden surge and a sudden crash is always an ideal situation for people to make illicit gains and then siphoning off the money.'
