India's Ambassador to the United States Ronen Sen offered his unqualified apology to the Rajya Sabha Privileges Committee on Friday over his 'headless chicken' remark. Sen is likely to be let off after a reprimand. The next meeting of the Privileges Committee will be held on November 16. On Monday, Sen had apologised to the Lok Sabha Privileges Committee for his comments.
Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar has rejected a privilege notice against Union Home Minister Amit Shah after he cited a 1948 government press release to authenticate his statement that a Congress leader was part of the management of Prime Minister's National Relief Fund. Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh had moved the notice against Shah for "casting aspersions" on Congress Parliamentary Party head Sonia Gandhi.
Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar on Wednesday referred the complaints of four MPs, who accused Aam Aadmi Party MP Raghav Chadha of proposing their name in a House panel without their consent in violation of rules, to the privileges committee to examine and investigate the matter.
Congress leader Renuka Chowdhury, a Rajya Sabha MP, has been served a notice for breach of privilege for bringing a stray into the Parliament complex and allegedly making derogatory remarks against MPs.
India's envoy to the United States Ronen Sen, who made the controversial 'headless chickens' remark to describe those opposing the India-United States nuclear deal, has been summoned by the Privileges Committee of the Rajya Sabha and the Lok Sabha. The next meeting of the Rajya Sabha Privileges Committee is scheduled on November 2 while the Lok Sabha Privileges Committee is expected to meet on October 29 and 30. The sources, however, said that no date has been fixed.
According to a Rajya Sabha bulletin, nine of the MPs are from the Congress and three from the AAP.
Fondly remembering the contribution of retiring members from the Rajya Sabha, Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar on Thursday said the wisdom shared by them would be greatly missed and their departure would leave a void.
The Lok Sabha will debate the 150th anniversary of 'Vande Mataram' and electoral reforms after an all-party agreement, potentially breaking the logjam over discussions on Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
'When Harivansh sits in the chair, you feel your voice will be heard.'
The Congress and the Left parties might move court to challenge LS speaker's ruling on Aadhaar as money Bill.
The Rajya Sabha secretariat has verified the signatures of 44 of the 55 MPs who had signed a notice to bring a motion for the removal of Allahabad high court Judge Shekhar Yadav over his 'hate speech' even as Kapil Sibal and nine others were yet to verify their signatures.
Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Derek O'Brien was suspended from the Rajya Sabha on Thursday for the remainder of the winter session of Parliament and the matter referred to the privileges committee as he did not leave the House even after repeated directions from Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar.
Both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha committees had recommended that their suspension be withdrawn after they expressed regret for their conduct during the Winter session when their relentless protests prompted the Chairs to take action.
Chadha thanked people for their love and blessings that he received during the period of suspension.
The BJP had no option but to get Jagdeep Dhankhar out of its way for the sake of the Modi government's stability, reveals Sheela Bhatt, the legendary political journalist.
Members of the BSP forced two adjournments of the Rajya Sabha till noon, creating uproar over the suicide of Dalit student, Rohith Vemula.
In their letter to Rajya Sabha Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar, the Congress leaders said during a discussion on the functioning of the ministry of agriculture and farmers' welfare on August 2, "misleading and incorrect assertions" were made by the minister.
While 30 of them were suspended for the remainder of the Winter Session, three were suspended pending the report of the Privileges Committee.
"I will approach the Committee of Privileges and court of law against the BJP Lok Sabha members who levelled the false allegation of forgery against me," Chadha said.
Opposition parties of the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) boycotted Lok Sabha proceedings on Friday to protest the suspension of Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury from the House.
Sen, who was summoned before both the Committees last month, had expressed his unqualified apology and reports suggested that he might be let off with a reprimand. Lok Sabha Committee sources said that a draft on the issue involving Sen, whose remarks created a furore in the both Houses of Parliament in the monsoon session, was ready and could be considered on Friday.
His suspension on Friday followed a motion moved by Leader of the House Piyush Goyal who sought action against the AAP leader for including names of some members of the Upper House without their consent in a proposed select committee for the Government of National Capital Territory of Delhi (Amendment) Bill, 2023.
The three frenetic weeks of the Parliament's Winter session saw a security breach in the Lok Sabha, suspension of 146 MPs and the expulsion of Trinamool Congress member Mahua Moitra in the "bribe-for-query" case.
Shiv Sena Member of Parliament Sanjay Raut's article on North Indians has brought down the image of parliamentarians in the public eye, a Rajya Sabha Privileges Committee on Monday held.
Congress leader in Lok Sabha Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury and some other MPs suspended from Parliament will not be able to attend the meetings of parliamentary committees of which they are a member or chairperson till their suspension is revoked.
The top court said the exclusion of a member of the Opposition from the House just because of a perspective which may not be consistent with the viewpoint of the government is a serious issue.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has alleged that leaders of the opposition Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) were involved in a "conspiracy" against his cabinet colleague Jaykumar Gore in a case involving a woman. Fadnavis said there was proof of communication between NCP leaders Supriya Sule and Rohit Pawar, and one of the accused in the case where three persons, including the woman, have been arrested for trying to extort money from Gore. He also pointed to Gore's acquittal more than five years ago in a case involving the woman's allegations of harassment. Fadnavis emphasized that opposition and ruling parties are political opponents and not enemies. The CM also criticized the behavior of some opposition members in the state assembly, accusing them of insulting the House and pressuring ministers.
Chowdhury, the leader of the Congress in Lok Sabha, was suspended on Thursday for allegedly attacking Prime Minister Narendra Modi and disturbing the ministers.
'Non-BJP state governments and their leaders, navigating today's political landscape, know well they have no clue what awaits around the corner.' 'The chances of charges pressed and oneself getting parked in custody play out on an uneven playing field,' points out Shyam G Menon.
Rajya Sabha members Mausam Noor and Priyanka Chaturvedi have written to Chairman Jagdeep Dhankhar, complaining about 'sloganeering' from the visitors' gallery of the House on September 21 and requesting him to take action in the matter.
Swamy gave notice in the Rajya Sabha for moving Breach of Privilege Motion against Leader of Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad over his remarks related to the AgustaWestland issue.
The current episode may well chart a different course and go for a long haul given the highly acerbic and bitter relations between the Narendra Modi government and the Opposition.
"In view of Sen's acceptance of having made the impugned remarks and that the same were unwarranted, and having tendered his unconditional apology, the Committee recommends that the matter should be allowed to rest here," the Rajya Sabha Committee said in its report tabled in the House. The Lok Sabha Privileges Committee, which had summoned Sen last month after the remark rocked Parliament during the monsoon session, last week decided to close the issue.
Defence Minister Rajnath Singh stated India's readiness to assist Pakistan in combating terrorism if it cannot act on its own, highlighting Operation Sindoor as a demonstration of India's capabilities. He also criticized Pakistan's appointment to a UN counter-terrorism committee.
With this, the total number of MPs suspended for unruly behaviour from the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha stands at an unprecedented 146 since December 14.
The INDIA bloc has 95 MPs in Rajya Sabha of which 45 were suspended on Monday.
The increased numbers of the Opposition bloc would mean that their MPs are likely to head several more panels than the four that they did by the end of the term of the 17th Lok Sabha.
Rajya Sabha deputy chairman Harivansh on Monday announced a probe into the complaints of at least four MPs that their names were included in a proposed select committee of the house for the Delhi services bill without their consent.
on Thursday adjourned sine die, ending the four-week-long second leg of the Budget session, during which treasury and opposition members locked horns over Rahul Gandhi's 'democracy' remark and the Adani issue.
Union Minister Piyush Goyal on Friday sought an apology from the Congress for the controversial statement by party MP that suggested a call for a separate south nation over fiscal injustice, but the opposition party's president said it stands for a united nation and will not tolerate any such call.
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