Government is likely to face stiff opposition on FDI in retail in the Monsoon session of Parliament beginning on August 8.
The government is seriously considering introducing the bill in Parliament next week, the last week of the current monsoon session, in view of promises that it would be tabled in this session.
Under Pressure for quite some time from his mother and Congress president Sonia Gandhi, as well as the rank and file and leaders of the party, Rahul has apparently given the go ahead and agreed to join the Manmohan Singh government as a minister. It is expected that he would become a cabinet minister and may even take oath before the monsoon session of Parliament.
The Bharatiya Janata party on Monday said it has come into election mode and is ready for snap polls for which it has laid down a roadmap making good governance and development as its poll planks.
The Election Commission's insistence on physical verification of millions of non-resident Indians wishing to get voting rights has led to delay in finalizing modalities for entry of their names in electoral rolls.
A longstanding wish of millions of Non Resident Indians for voting right in India has come true with the Centre issuing a notification to this effect to enable them to exercise their franchise.Parliament had in the monsoon session passed the Representation of People (Amendment) Bill, 2010 to allow NRIs to vote in Indian elections and now government has issued a gazette notification in this regard.
A bill to amend a four-decade-old law, which proposes to allow Indian legal heirs to inherit the properties of relatives who migrated to Pakistan after Partition, was on Monday introduced in the Lok Sabha.
Trinamool Congress MP Derek O'Brien said the situation in Bihar is one of the reasons behind the Parliament session being cut short by the government.
The opposition strategy to corner the government on Manipur will continue in the Rajya Sabha as well, the sources said.
The government on Tuesday excuded confidence that the new Company Law, which promises greater shareholder democracy and stricter corporate governance norms, will be enacted by the end of this fiscal.
The Communist Party of India-Marxist demanded tabling of a draft law to deal with honour killings in the monsoon session of Parliament, alleging that "political considerations" were downplaying the magnitude of such crimes. The party also criticised Home Minister P Chidambaram, saying he had a "flawed understanding" on having a separate comprehensive legislation on the issue.
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Wednesday said the country is on an "upward curve" and a good monsoon, GST passage and increased infra and rural spending will further accelerate the growth.
The Centre on Thursday announced that a Group of Ministers will be formed to decide on the modalities of the Khap bill which seeks to strengthen laws against honour killing.The government's move indicates differences within the United Progressive Alliance over introducing stricter laws to deal with honour killings. Many senior leaders are apprehensive about such changes angering rural voters in Punjab and Haryana, where Khap panchayats wield immense clout.
A Cabinet reshuffle is likely by July 10, a fortnight before the monsoon session of Parliament begins. The Congress wants its allies like the Nationalist Congress Party, Trinamool Congress and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam to hand over some of their high-profile and 'profitable' portfolios. The ruling party reportedly wants Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar to part with the food portfolio, so that it can be allotted to Congress's new found ally Ajit Singh.
In a statement, the SKM, an umbrella body of 40 farmers' unions, said the struggle will continue to get all demands of the protesting farmers fulfilled and all announced plans are underway.
Terming the joining of hands of civil society and government on the Lokpal Bill issue as a step that augurs well for democracy, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Saturday said the government intended to introduce the "historic legislation" in the Monsoon Session of Parliament.
The Bill's 2007 version covered only MFIs not regulated by the Reserve Bank of India.
'If the business before the House is suspended under Rule 267 it will mean the government has recognised that there is great urgency (to discuss the Manipur violence).' 'Government doesn't want to recognise that at all.'
The parliamentary panel on information technology will question government officials on allegations relating to suspected phone tapping of politicians, journalists and others using Pegasus spyware, the committee chairman and senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor said on Tuesday, and asserted that it is the "most important issue" for many members.
During the meeting, the parties also decided to unitedly move forward in fielding a joint candidate for the post of deputy chairman of Rajya Sabha, which fell vacant after the retirement of P J Kurien on July 1.
Kejriwal said the eight MPs were fighting for the rights of farmers without worrying about heat, mosquitoes or other inconveniences and have spent the night protesting in the Parliament complex.
Justice Bal Krishna Jha also issued a show cause notice to the DM and the SP of Siwan for letting the RJD MP stay in hospital while in police custody.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday said the Covid crisis is not a political but a humanitarian issue and asserted that the government has ensured no one goes hungry during the pandemic.
The Congress' chief whip Jairam Ramesh, said, 'Today, too, the INDIA parties demanded the prime minister's presence in the Rajya Sabha to make a statement on Manipur, to be followed by a discussion.'