A usually soft-spoken Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar on Friday pulled up Janata Dal-United chief Sharad Yadav when he sought to challenge her authority and responded angrily to her remarks.
Within an hour of taking over as Speaker, Meira Kumar issued her first directive in Lok Sabha on Wednesday, asking the House reporters to expunge certain exchanges between Janata Dal-United chief Sharad Yadav and Rashtriya Janata Dal supremo Lalu Prasad. When Prasad was speaking to congratulate Kumar, he made certain statements which were objected to by Yadav.
The stakes are significant for the BJP in this round as the party had in 2019 won an overwhelming majority of these seats, including all in Gujarat, Chhattisgarh, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh, that will go to polls on May 7.
For the first time in his political career, he failed to carry his party to even a working majority -- and again, for the first time in his career, he finds himself in a situation where he cannot rule by dictatorial fiat, points out Prem Panicker.
The Opposition INDIA bloc on Friday finalised a 14-member coordination-cum-election strategy committee comprising members of various parties, and it will function as the alliance's highest decision-making body and start work on seat-sharing immediately, sources said.
"The current situation in Bihar is very disappointing for me. The mandate by the people of Bihar was not for this. I don't agree with the decision taken in Bihar. It's unfortunate," Yadav said.
Thakur's tenure as chief minister is best remembered for implementation of the recommendations of the Mungeri Lal Commission, whereby quotas for backward classes were introduced in the state in 1978. This panel was the forerunner of the Mandal Commission. Both Mungeri Lal and B P Mandal were from Bihar, which has a long history of socialist struggles.
Harping on putting up a united front, the Congress alleged that democracy is being "mercilessly murdered" and MPs who raise people's issues are suspended from the House.
Bihar Chief Minister Jitan Ram Manjhi on Saturday visited Janata Dal-United leader Nitish Kumar in the presence of party president Sharad Yadav to reconcile after Bharatiya Janata Party's top leadership in Delhi made it clear not to support Manjhi.
The alliance would announce a coordination committee, which could be of 11 members from principal opposition parties.
'Ajit Pawar and some other people felt it was better to be supporting the BJP and have a coalition with the BJP than support the Congress.' 'But Sharad Pawar did not want to be a party to this kind of an opportunistic alliance.'
Mayank Agarwal played a captain's knock of 109, as his side took a 64-run lead on Day 2
Seven Olympic and six Paralympic disciplines were identified for support at a meeting of the Mission Olympic Cell.
Abhay Chautala said that Banerjee has told him that she had some preoccupation on that day and she will depute a senior leader of her party for the event while Thackeray told him that if he is unable to attend due to some reasons he will send a senior leader for the event.
National Democratic Alliance convenor Sharad Yadav on Thursday took a swipe at Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar claiming she was more "affectionate" towards the Treasury Benches, but showed little mercy towards the Opposition.
For the BJP, Telangana is a sunrise state in the South, while Karnataka is a southern success despite the ups and downs.
Known for weighing his options carefully before making any move, Kumar, upon a closer look, comes across as a risk taker who has not shied away from going against the tide.
The JD-U supreme leader, whose party, in Parliament, has been supporting the demand for a joint parliamentary committee probe, however, did not seem impressed with the Maratha strongman's preference for an investigation by a 'Supreme Court-appointed Committee'.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar on Wednesday said he aspired to become the CM of the state and also took a jibe at his 83-year-old uncle asking when will the Maratha strongman retire from active politics, as he appeared to be ahead in the numbers game for control of the Nationalist Congress Party after its vertical split.
Janata Dal-United chief Sharad Yadav on Wednesday shared the dais with Samajwadi Party supremo Mulayam Singh Yadav on the inaugural day of SP's national convention in Lucknow, fuelling speculation about their joining hands.
Sharad Kumar smashes continental record for gold in men's high jump
As part of the efforts to bring several opposition parties together on a common platform to defeat the BJP in 2024 Lok Sabha polls, Pawar met Kharge on Thursday evening.
Leaders from 26 opposition parties, in power individually or in alliance in Delhi and 10 states, are meeting in Bengaluru to discuss strategy to take on the Narendra Modi-led NDA in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
The Enforcement Directorate on Saturday questioned Kalaignar TV MD Sharad Kumar in connection with its probe into his role in the alleged financial irregularities in the 2G spectrum allocation case.
According to a senior Congress leader, the constituents of the opposition alliance intend to move forward with the theme "Main Nahin, Hum (We, Not Me)" at the meeting.
Bihar Chief Minister and JD(U) leader Nitish Kumar on Saturday admitted that there is variance in opinion between him and party chief Sharad Yadav on Women's Reservation Bill and called it a "difference of approach".
Political leaders from across states in the country have turned up for the event. Here's a glimpse at some of the leaders who have shown up for the big-ticket event.
The Rashtriya Janata Dal leader also said, "This is not the first meeting of opposition leaders nor is it going to be the last. Leaders of different hues have agreed to meet and they will all raise issues that they feel strongly about. There is no problem with that."
Most leaders agreed for early finalisation of poll plans for 2024 stressing that there was no time left with them and mere meetings would not help.
Ahead of the day-long Opposition meeting on Friday, Samvad Bhavan, Rajkiye Atithisala and Sadaquat Ashram have got a facelift.
However, Yadav clarified later that his comment was meant to be a joke.
Locked in a bitter tussle with the Centre over the control of administrative services, Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party national convenor Arvind Kejriwal will meet the chiefs of the Trinamool Congress, Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray and the Nationalist Congress Party this week seeking their support.
Dharampal, a rape convict who later murdered the victim and four members of her family while out on parole in 1993, will he hanged in Ambala prison on April 15, Haryana Director General of Police, Prisons, Sharad Kumar said on Saturday."He (Dharampal) will be hanged in Ambala jail on April 15. All the necessary arrangements needed to carry out the execution are in place," said Kumar.
Announcing the party decision, Bihar JD-U president Vashishtha Narayan said, ""It was a necessary step because being leader if a person indulges in anti-party activities it has to be condemned unanimously."
Kanimozhi, the daughter of DMK chief M Karunanidhi and Kumar have challenged the Delhi high court verdict rejecting their bail. "We have filed a special leave petition on behalf of both Kanimozhi and Kumar challenging the high court order," senior advocate V G Pargasm said.
India's merchandise exports rose by 22.63 per cent year-on-year to $33.79 billion in September on better performance by key sectors like engineering goods and petroleum products, according to official data released on Thursday.
Indian and Canada are looking at exploring more opportunities in the mining sector.
Kumar had also made it clear that he was in the process of uniting the non-BJP leaders.
'Javelin has now taken a boost in the country and after my medal now 50 students have approached my coach for training. I feel like a star now.'
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