The meeting comes amid the speculation that the Sharad Pawar led NCP may join the ruling alliance.
The Monsoon Session of the Parliament is scheduled to commence on Monday and is slated to conclude on October 1. There will be no question hour and private members' business during the monsoon session.
Hectic preparations are underway for the session with several first-time measures because of the COVID-19 pandemic such as testing of all MPs, staggered sitting of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha and use of both chambers and galleries to accommodate members while following physical distancing norms, officials said.
Opposition MPs, including Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge, staged a symbolic protest in Parliament, enacting the "theft" of Ram Temple donations. The INDIA bloc demanded Home Minister Amit Shah's resignation and questioned his absence, also protesting police action against student agitators.
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.
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The monsoon session of Parliament is likely to begin on August 8 and continue till September 7, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal said on Wednesday.
Activist Sonam Wangchuk's wife, Gitanjali J Angmo, announced that Wangchuk would end his indefinite hunger strike if political leaders assure him that education accountability will be a focus of the upcoming Monsoon Session of Parliament. Wangchuk, currently admitted to Safdarjung Hospital, continues his fast, demanding action against the alleged NEET paper leak and broader education reforms.
The plan involves the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha seating half of their members in their respective chambers, reports Archis Mohan.
The monsoon session of Parliament has been further delayed, indicating that the session may be convened on August 7 instead of earlier planned July 30.
The NDA's parliamentary party meetings will now be known as 'Mangal Milan', with the first under this new name scheduled for July 21. This change was informally discussed in the Union cabinet. Additionally, the newly formed Nationalist Citizens Party of India (NCPI), comprising 20 MPs who defected from the TMC, is seeking formal recognition and parliamentary facilities, including a party office and designated floor leaders.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has called upon citizens to celebrate Independence Day with honour and pride, urging them to take a pledge for a developed India. This appeal comes amidst parliamentary sessions marked by protests from both ruling and opposition alliances.
The productivity of the Budget session was abysmal. The Lok Sabha functioned for 33% of its scheduled time (46 hours); the Rajya Sabha 24% (32 hours).
According to latest data, 444 members from Lok Sabha and 218 rom Rajya Sabha have been vaccinated with at least one dose.
Delhi Police has significantly increased security across New Delhi ahead of the Monsoon session of Parliament and a proposed "Chalo Sansad" march by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP). Additional personnel, barricades, and vehicle checks are in place, with authorities stating no permission has been granted for the march. The heightened vigil follows CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke's hunger strike and activist Sonam Wangchuk's call for the July 20 march from the hospital.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju asserted in Lok Sabha that the Opposition cannot dictate which minister responds to questions, amidst demands for Home Minister Amit Shah to address police action on protesting students. The House faced continuous disruptions, leading to adjournment.
Congress leader Shashi Tharoor has once again introduced a rare English word, "quockerwodger," to social media, defining it as a "political puppet." He used the term to criticise the ruling party, suggesting they have "spawned a few of these." Tharoor has a history of using obscure words like 'allodoxaphobia', 'farrago', and 'troglodyte' to make political points and engage social media users.
Kharge, who is also the Congress President, demanded that cases should be registered, under the Untouchability Act, against those who purified the stage in Haldwani, and they should be arrested and sent to jail.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has said that the Congress will oppose the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill and the issue will also be discussed at the meeting of floor leaders of opposition parties on Monday.
The monsoon session of Parliament is likely to be convened around the second week of September, at the time when the India-United States nuclear agreement is expected to go through all the processes including the final voting by the American Congress.The Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs is expected to take a decision on the matter next week, amid indications from the government as also the Congress that there is no hurry to convene the session.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi lauded young Indian innovators for the country's first privately developed orbital rocket, Skyroot Aerospace's Vikram-1, which made India the third nation with private orbital launch capabilities. While praising the 28-year-old average age of the Skyroot team, Modi made a veiled remark about a "56-year-old young man," widely understood to be a dig at Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who recently turned 56.
The Cabinet Committee on Parliamentary Affairs took the decision to extend the session till September 6 at a meeting held in Parliament House.
The Centre has ordered the deployment of 20 additional companies of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in Delhi. These forces are being airlifted from West Bengal to strengthen security measures in response to CJP protests, demonstrations by various political parties, and the ongoing Parliament session, following instances of violent clashes.
There has been much criticism of politicians and Parliament by some activists. It is for parliamentarians to regain their moral legitimacy by carefully considering the legislative proposals and passing them. The next few weeks are an opportunity to do just that, says M R Madhavan.
The session will have nearly 18 sittings, Parliamentary Affairs minister Ananth Kumar said.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla has made a rare move by nominating two Rajya Sabha members as "special invitees" to the Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) examining the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Amendment Bill, 2026. This decision comes as the contentious Bill, referred to the 31-member JPC for detailed examination, faces opposition demands for its withdrawal.
Consensus building is likely to be the biggest casualty.
On the agenda during the session will be getting the Land Acquisition Bill, GST and other important bills passed.
The Lok Sabha on Thursday suspended newly-elected AAP member Sushil Kumar Rinku for the remaining part of the monsoon session for unruly behaviour in the house.
The month-long monsoon session of Parliament will begin on August 8, it was announced in New Delhi on Thursday.
A heated parliamentary showdown unfolded as NDA and INDIA bloc MPs clashed at Parliament's main gate.
Thousands of protesters, including children, students, and the elderly, gathered in central Delhi for the Cockroach Janta Party's 'Chalo Sansad' march towards Parliament. The protest, coinciding with the Monsoon Session, led to clashes with police, who used tear gas and lathi-charge, resulting in injuries to both sides and suspension of internet services. Despite police action and barricades, protesters repeatedly attempted to reach Parliament, leading to a day-long standoff.
Parliament has passed The Prevention of Insults to National Honour (Amendment) Bill, 2026, making any insult to the national song Vande Mataram a criminal offence, punishable with imprisonment up to three years or a fine.
The Indian government has confirmed its readiness for a Lok Sabha debate on the ongoing student protests and police action, with Union Home Minister Amit Shah set to address the concerns, particularly those related to the NEET paper leak issue.
The monsoon session of parliament is all set to begin on July 21, but it will be a truncated three-week affair.
The monsoon session of Parliament was on Monday adjourned sine die four days ahead of schedule in the shadow of the government-Opposition stand-off on the Indo-US nuclear deal that disrupted proceedings from day one
The nearly month-long session is likely to have around 20 sittings, sources said.
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will present the Union Budget on Tuesday as the Monsoon Session of Parliament gets underway next week with the united opposition set to corner the National Democratic Alliance government on issues ranging from the NEET paper leak case and railway safety.
Monday's proceedings demonstrated that the legislative debate has become inseparable from the broader political crisis surrounding the NEET controversy.
The disruption by Opposition members drew sharp criticism from Prime Minister Modi who accused them of being unable to digest the fact that a large number of new ministers are women, Dalits, tribals and those from other backward classes
